Here are the latest news updates and possible return dates for Knicks players…

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Feb. 4, 5:25 p.m.

The Knicks are once again dealing with a thin backcourt, as head coach Mike Brown revealed guards Josh Hart and Miles McBride are unavailable for Wednesday’s home game against the Nuggets with ankle injuries.

Hart suffered a left ankle sprain during the third quarter of Tuesday’s road win over the Wizards, as cameras caught him hobbling to the locker room. While the severity of his injury is still unknown, the veteran missed a handful of games earlier this season due to a right ankle issue.

As for McBride, who last played on Jan. 27 against the Kings, he’s about to miss a fifth straight game. He’s averaged 12.9 points across 35 games this season, shooting a career-best 42 percent from three.

The good news is rookie Mohamed Diawara, who also exited Tuesday’s win early with an ankle injury, will be active on Wednesday. 

Feb. 2, 5:00 p.m.

The Knicks’ depth will be tested against the Wizards on Tuesday night, as Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson have already been ruled out due to left ankle injury management.

McBride, who last played on Jan. 27 against the Kings, will be unavailable for a fourth straight game. The fifth-year guard has averaged 12.9 points across 35 games this season, shooting a career-best 42 percent from three.

As for Robinson, his absence is more precautionary with a back-to-back slate ahead. He racked up seven rebounds and one block (23 minutes) in Sunday’s win over the Lakers, and SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley reports he’s likely to return to action on Wednesday against the Nuggets.

Jan. 31, 6:30 p.m.

New York ruled out Miles McBride (left ankle injury management) for Sunday’s primetime game against the Los Angeles Lakers, per the team’s Saturday injury report.

It will be the third straight game that McBride has missed, last playing on Jan. 27 against the Sacramento Kings. Over 35 games this season, McBride is averaging 12.9 points per game and shooting 42 percent from three.

Despite his absence the past two games, the Knicks have extended their winning streak to five games after a rough 2-9 stretch

Jan. 28 1:36 p.m.

The Knicks will be without Miles McBride (left ankle management) and Mitchell Robinson (left ankle management) when they take on the Raptors in Toronto on Wednesday night in the second game of a back-to-back.

McBride played 30 minutes in Tuesday’s win over the Kings, scoring nine points. Robinson also played against Sacramento, scoring seven points with 13 rebounds (six offensive) over 27 minutes of action.

Additionally, Josh Hart is being listed as questionable due to right ankle soreness.

Jan. 24, 2:36 p.m.

After the Knicks designated Karl-Anthony Towns as questionable with back spasms, the team announced just before Saturday’s tip with the 76ers that the big man will indeed play.

Philly upgraded Paul George (knee) and Joel Embiid (ankle) as available for Saturday’s game.

Jan. 23, 6:20 p.m.

The latest NBA injury report was updated and Knicks big man Karl-Anthony Towns is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game against the 76ers.

New York is citing thoracic back spasms as the reason for Towns’ designation.

As for Philly, Paul George (knee) and Joel Embiid (ankle) are listed as probable for the big showdown between Eastern Conference rivals. 

Jan. 19, 3:35 p.m.

Fresh off being named an All-Star starter for the second straight year, Jalen Brunson (right ankle sprain) will be back in action on Monday when the Knicks take on the Dallas Mavericks, head coach Mike Brown said.

Brunson has missed most of New York’s last three games, all losses, after spraining his ankle in the first quarter against the Sacramento Kings last Wednesday.

Josh Hart (right ankle soreness) will also return to the court on Monday after sitting out Saturday’s loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Jan. 18 5:20 p.m.

Jalen Brunson (right ankle sprain) and Josh Hart (right ankle soreness) are both being listed as questionable for Monday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks.

The former college teammates did not play on Saturday night in a loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Brunson has already missed 2-plus games since suffering the injury on Wednesday against the Sacramento Kings, as the Knicks have dropped their last three straight contests.

Jan. 17, 5:58 p.m.

After initially being listed as questionable, Knicks head coach Mike Brown ruled out Josh Hart (ankle) and Jalen Brunson (ankle) for Saturday’s game against the Suns.

Jan. 17, 1:15 p.m.

The Knicks are listing Josh Hart as questionable for Saturday’s game against the Phoenix Suns due to right ankle soreness.

Hart has played in New York’s past three games after missing eight games with an ankle injury suffered on Christmas Day. The team went 3-5 in his absence.

He’s averaging 12.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.3 steals per game over 31 contests this season.

Jalen Brunson (ankle) is also questionable for Saturday night and still listed as day-to-day after suffering a right ankle sprain against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday. He did not play in Thursday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Jan. 15, 8:20 p.m.

The Knicks will be without Jalen Brunson on Thursday, but they will receive reinforcement in the rotation.

Landry Shamet has officially been ruled available for the meeting with the Warriors.  

Shamet’s been out since Nov. 22 with a shoulder injury, but he’s been working his way back and was officially upgraded to questionable heading into the matchup. 

It’s unclear whether or not he’ll be on a minutes restriction, but his return is certainly a welcome sight. 

Shamet was averaging 9.3 points on 45 percent shooting from the field in 15 games prior to the injury.

Jan. 10, 5:00 p.m.

Josh Hart (ankle) has been upgraded to questionable for Sunday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers.

The wing has not played since Christmas Day, missing the past eight games.

New York has gone 3-5 without him, including dropping five of their last six games.

Jan. 6, 5:20 p.m.

The latest Knicks injury report lists Josh Hart and Landry Shamet as out for Wednesday’s tip against the Clippers at MSG.

Hart (ankle) will miss his seventh consecutive game, in which the Knicks are 2-4 in his absence. SNY’s Ian Begley said on The Putback that Hart is “close” to coming back. The team had said last week that they would re-evaluate Hart in a week, and it seems enough progress hasn’t been made.

After Wednesday’s game, the Knicks travel west to take on the Suns in Phoenix on Friday.

Jan. 3, 2026, 1:41 p.m.

The Knicks are listing Karl-Anthony Towns as questionable for Saturday night’s game against the visiting Philadelphia 76ers due to illness. Towns missed Friday night’s defeat to the Atlanta Hawks with the same ailment.

Mitchell Robinson (ankle injury management) is off the injury report for Saturday after not playing the previous night.

Josh Hart (shoulder) is making improvements, but remains out alongside Landry Shamet (shoulder). 

Dec. 30, 10:27 p.m.

Mitchell Robinson (ankle injury management) is out for Wednesday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs.

New York’s big man is one of three players who have been listed as out for the NBA Cup rematch on New Year’s Eve. Robinson joins Josh Hart (right ankle sprain) and Landry Shamet (shoulder) as those unavailable for the game.

Tyler Kolek (right ankle soreness) is listed as probable, while Ariel Hukporti (lip laceration) is questionable for Wednesday’s game.

Dec. 27, 6:10 p.m.

On the last injury report ahead of Saturday’s tip against the Hawks, the Knicks listed Miles McBride (ankle) as out.

McBride was listed as questionable as recently as Friday, but it seems the guard will miss his eighth game.

Dec. 26, 3:42 p.m.

The Knicks will be without forward Josh Hart when they play the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday. The forward left the Christmas Day win over Cleveland in the fourth quarter and has been diagnosed with an ankle sprain. 

But there was some good news: reserve guard Miles McBride (ankle) has been upgraded to questionable. That’s an indication that he is very close to making a return to the court after missing the last seven games.

Landry Shamet (shoulder) remains sidelined.

Dec. 22, 4:20 p.m.

The Knicks will be short-handed on Tuesday night in Minnesota against the Timberwolves.

Jalen Brunson (right ankle management), OG Anunoby (left ankle soreness), and Guerschon Yabusele (illness) are all listed as out.

Additionally, Miles McBride (ankle), Landry Shamet (shoulder), and Pacôme Dadiet (G-League assignment) will remain out as well.

New York has gone 2-1 since winning the NBA Cup last Tuesday and face a hot Minnesota squad, winners of four out of their last five games.

Dec. 19, 5:25 p.m.

Head coach Mike Brown confirmed that Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart will play against the 76ers on Friday, hours after they were listed as probable on the injury report.

Dec. 19, 2:00 p.m.

On the heels of a back-to-back, the Knicks will get some of their core back in the lineup on Friday night against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Karl-Anthony Towns (knee soreness) and Josh Hart (rectus abdominis strain) are listed as probable, while Mitchell Robinson and OG Anunoby aren’t on the injury report and should be available. Towns, Hart, and Robinson all did not play in Thursday’s win over the Indiana Pacers. 

Miles McBride (ankle) and Landry Shamet (shoulder) will remain out for New York on Friday. Additionally, Pacôme Dadiet was assigned to the Westchester Knicks.

The Sixers will be without former MVP Joel Embiid (illness, right knee injury management), who was downgraded from questionable. Embiid has played in just 11 of Philly’s 25 games this season, averaging only 20.5 points and 6.6 rebounds when on the court (26.2 minutes per game). Philadelphia will also be without Kelly Oubre Jr. (left knee sprain) and Trendon Watford (left adductor strain).

Dec. 18, 5:15 p.m.

Fresh off the NBA Cup triumph, the Knicks are going to be without a host of players for Thursday night’s matchup with the lowly Indiana Pacers (6-20).

Karl-Anthony Towns (knee soreness), Josh Hart (rectus abdominis strain),  and Mitchell Robinson (ankle management) will all not feature due to slight injuries. New York will already be without Miles McBride and Landry Shamet, who are on the shelf with longer-term injuries.

OG Anunoby (knee contusion) was on the injury report, but will play.

Dec. 7, 3:22 p.m.

Knicks guard Miles McBride exited Sunday’s win over the Orlando Magic in the first half, and according to SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley, the guard is still in the process of being evaluated for a left ankle injury.

The Knicks say they will know more on McBride’s status on Monday. 

As a starter or a bench player, McBride has been terrific this season. In 19 games (nine starts), McBride has averaged a career-best 15.8 points per games while shooting 46.2 percent from beyond the arc.

Dec. 4, 5:10 p.m.

The Knicks are seemingly close to getting OG Anunoby back. According to SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley, Anunoby (hamstring) has been upgraded to questionable for Friday’s game against the Utah Jazz at MSG.

Begley noted on Thursday’s episode of The Putback that this weekend’s games are a target for the Knicks to get Anunoby back on the court.

Anunoby has missed every game since suffering the injury on Nov. 14 against the Miami Heat.

Head coach Mike Brown said that Anunoby has progressed to taking contact in practice and it seems as though the forward is reacting to it in a positive manner. Of course, this doesn’t mean Anunoby will play on Friday, but it leaves open the possibility.

Dec. 3, 6:40 p.m.

Knicks head coach Mike Brown gave a short update on OG Anunoby (hamstring). The coach said that Anunoby has progressed to taking contact in practice.

“It’s still the same, he’s still progressing in the right direction,” Brown said of Anunoby before Wednesday’s game against the Hornets. “We’re not going to rush him.”

Brown also confirmed that Mitchell Robinson (injury management) will miss Wednesday’s game, as it’s the second of a back-to-back. 

Mike Brown said that OG Anunoby has taken contact in practice but the Knicks “won’t rush him” pic.twitter.com/tZLSHsXqY0

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) December 3, 2025

Nov. 19, 9:05 p.m.

Jalen Brunson (ankle) will return to the court and start on Wednesday night in Dallas against the Mavericks, the team announced prior to tip-off.

Brunson suffered a Grade 1 right ankle sprain against the Orlando Magic on Nov. 12 and missed the team’s next two games against the Miami Heat. New York split the two contests, winning at home and losing on the road. The team is still searching for its first road win of the season, dropping all four games away from the Garden.

Over 11 games this year, Brunson is averaging 28.0 points on 46.7 percent shooting and 6.5 assists per game. 

Meanwhile, the Mavs will be without rookie Cooper Flagg (illness) on Wednesday night as he’ll miss the first game of his career.

Nov. 18, 6:50 p.m.

The Knicks upgraded Jalen Brunson (ankle) to questionable for their Wednesday tip against the Mavericks in Dallas. 

Brunson had missed the team’s last two games since suffering a right ankle sprain back on Nov. 12 against the Orlando Magic at MSG. Already without OG Anunoby (hamstring), the Knicks could use their captain to try and get their first road win of the season. 

Oct. 28, 7:18 p.m.

Before the Knicks’ tip-off against the Bucks, the Knicks announced that Towns (right quad strain) will play, but Yabusele (left knee sprain) will be out, joining McBride (personal) and Robinson (ankle sprain management) as players who are unavailable for Tuesday’s game.

Oct. 28, 3:35 p.m.

Miles McBride has been downgraded from questionable to out for the Knicks’ game on Tuesday at the Milwaukee Bucks, the team announced. This is the second-straight game the guard missed due to personal reasons. He was out for Sunday’s loss against the Miami Heat.

Oct. 27, 6:45 p.m.

Mitchell Robinson still isn’t ready to make his season debut, as the Knicks have officially ruled him out again for Tuesday night’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Robinson has been sidelined for the first three games due to left ankle injury management, and it’s still unknown when he’ll make his return to the court. 

New York has also listed Karl-Anthony Towns (right quad strain), Miles McBride (personal reasons), and Guerschon Yabusele (left knee sprain) as questionable for the contest. 

Yabusele is the only new addition to the injury report. Towns has been included heading into each of the first three games, but played in all three, and McBride missed Sunday’s game against the Heat for personal reasons. 

Yabusele left Sunday’s game at one point and had his knee checked, but he was able to return and saw regular time off the bench down the stretch.

Oct. 23, 6:10 p.m.

The latest NBA injury report has been released and the Knicks have designated center Mitchell Robinson (left ankle injury management) as out for Friday’s home game against the Celtics.

Robinson missed Wednesday’s season opener and the Knicks are being cautious with their big man this season as they want to have him at close to full strength for an anticipated long playoff run.

The Knicks have also designated both Josh Hart (lower back) and Karl-Anthony Towns (right quad strain) as questionable. 

Hart also missed the season opener but has not seen action since the first preseason game where he tweaked his back. Towns almost missed Wednesday’s game but toughed out his quad strain and to help the Knicks’ win against the Cavaliers.

OG Anunoby, who played Wednesday despite being questionable with an ankle sprain, is probably for Friday’s game.

Oct. 22, 10:59 p.m.

Karl-Anthony Towns was questionable, then doubtful, then questionable again in the hours leading up to the Knicks’ win over the Cavaliers and now we know exactly why.

The Knicks forward told reporters after Wednesday’s win that he is playing through a Grade 2 quad strain. 

“I’ve been banged up and haven’t really got a chance to practice or play in the last two preseason games,” Towns said. “I didn’t want to disappoint the fans, dealing with a Grade 2 quad strain. It’s not something that’s easy to do. We made it happen tonight. Glad the fans respect the effort I put in to play tonight, and my teammates, too. Shoutout to them for supporting me, knowing the situation that I was in.”

Towns played through the pain to give the Knicks 19 points and 11 rebounds in 30 minutes.

Many New York Rangers fans may look at the Artemi Panarin trade to the Los Angeles Kings and feel underwhelmed. 

Just two conditional picks and one prospect (Liam Greentree) in exchange for a superstar talent the likes of Panarin? How does that make sense?

At the surface level, it is a severely underwhelming trade package, but given the circumstances, Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury was ultimately handcuffed into settling for less value than Panarin is truly worth. 

The Rangers seemingly lost leverage when it was announced on Jan. 16 that the team does not plan to re-sign Panarin beyond this season and will look to trade him to any team he wishes to join.

Panarin’s full no-move clause in his contract allowed him to dictate the exact destination that made the most sense for him. 

Leading up to the trade, it was clear that Panarin was seeking a contract extension from the team to which he would be traded, as his seven-year, $81.5 million contract is set to expire after the 2025-26 season. 

Upon being held out of the Rangers’ lineup starting on Jan. 28 due to roster management, Panarin and his agent, Paul Theofanous, were able to explore the market and determine which teams would be willing to give a contract extension that met their demands. 

According to Vincent Mercogliano of The Athletic, the 34-year-old forward talked to several teams in an effort to negotiate and decide where he wanted to go.

Multiple reports indicate that Panarin zeroed in on the Kings as his preferred destination, and the Rangers were only able to do business with them due to his no-move clause and unwillingness to be traded to any other organization outside of the Kings.

Artemi Panarin Traded To Kings Ahead Of Roster Freeze The New York Rangers have <a href=”https://x.com/emilymkaplan/status/2019139491420836214″>reportedly traded</a> Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Liam Greentree and a conditional third-round pick.&nbsp;

It was Panarin’s desire for a contract extension that gave the Kings an advantage over the multiple reported teams originally in the mix for the Russian winger, including the Washington Capitals, Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, San Jose Sharks, and New York Islanders. 

Panarin and his camp always held the cards throughout this entire saga. 

There’s still plenty of blame to go around from Drury’s end who, similar to the way in which he traded Chris Kreider, Jacob Trouba, Kaapo Kakko, and Ryan Lindgren, simply waited too long and let this situation with Panarin linger to the point where his value was diminished to what it ultimately could have been.

When it came down to it, the Rangers had no leverage, and this return for Panarin is just the harsh reality of the situation.

The Utah Jazz are expected to waive Lonzo Ball after acquiring the guard in a three-team trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers, meaning Ball is poised to become a free agent, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday.

In addition to the 28-year-old Ball, the Cavaliers are also sending their 2028 and 2032 second-round picks to the Jazz, according to NBA insider Jake Fischer.

As part of the trade, the Jazz are shipping center Jock Landale off to the Atlanta Hawks for cash considerations, per multiplereports.

The Jazz collect a pair of second-round picks, the Hawks acquire Landale — who had been averaging a career-high 11.3 points and 6.5 rebounds per game for the Memphis Grizzlies before the 30-year-old big man was first dealt to Utah in the Jaren Jackson Jr. trade — and the Cavaliers dump salary amid deadline chaos that’s already brought them James Harden, Keon Ellis and Dennis Schröder.

Trading Ball frees Cleveland of his $10 million salary, according to The Athletic.

This past summer, Ball landed with the Cavs, then his fourth team since going No. 2 overall out of UCLA in the 2017 NBA Draft. He had previously played for the Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Pelicans and Chicago Bulls, the last of whom traded him to Cleveland for wing Isaac Okoro.

[Get more Cavs news: Cleveland team feed]

At the time, Cleveland was looking to reinforce its backcourt following the free-agency departure of Ty Jerome. However, Ball hasn’t made the impact the Cavaliers imagined.

He’s shooting a meager 30.1% from the field this season, including a ghastly 27.2% from deep. His 4.6 points per game are, by far, a career low.

Plus, Ball is averaging just 3.9 assists per game, his second fewest since reaching the league. He played 20.8 minutes per contest in his 35 outings with the Cavs.

In October 2024, Ball returned to the court for his first game in more than 1,000 days after missing 2 1/2 seasons because of an array of knee injuries. 

Since then, he’s yet to score more than 18 points in a game.

For the most part, NBA observers expected the Washington Wizards to spend the 2026 NBA trade deadline operating as they’ve been for the past couple of years: renting out their cap space in exchange for young prospects and future draft picks, continuing their years-long “deconstruction” following the stunted John Wall/Bradley Beal era in pursuit of raw materials with which to build the franchise’s next competitive team.

There was, however, a slight whisper of a zag — one given voice last month by Josh Robbins of The Athletic: “Several league sources who have watched the Wizards’ dealings from afar think the Wizards would consider making an additional opportunistic move […] to add another so-called ‘distressed asset.’”

That notion came alongside multiple reports, in the weeks since swinging their “OK, sure, why not, it doesn’t really cost us anything” deal for Trae Young, that the Wizards had been kicking the tires on a deal for a big man — a prospective pick-and-roll partner for the four-time All-Star tablesetter, and a paint-patrolling partner for rising sophomore shot-swatter Alex Sarr. Maybe Domantas Sabonis. Maybe Walker Kessler.

Or maybe, y’know, “another so-called ‘distressed asset.’”

Amid multiplereports that all was quiet on the Anthony Davis front, save for some tepid interest from Toronto, the Wizards swooped in and snagged AD off the scrap heap, along with fourth-year guard Jaden Hardy, the injured Dante Exum and D’Angelo Russell, a spiritual Wizard if ever there was one.

“I’m told this deal ‘came out of left field,’” Robbins wrote Wednesday afternoon. (I’m guessing AD didn’t see it coming, either.)

The price tag: what could be about $40.5 million in expiring contracts (Khris Middleton, restricted free-agent-to-be Malaki Branham, reserve center Marvin Bagley III), just-turned-21-year-old guard AJ Johnson, two first-round picks — Oklahoma City’s 2026 selection (likely to land at the bottom of the first round) and a top-20-protected 2030 Golden State first (from 2023’s Jordan Poole deal, fairly likely to convey as a second-rounder) — and second-round picks in 2026 (Phoenix), 2027 (Chicago) and 2029 (Houston).

If you find yourself thinking, “Wow, that sure isn’t much of a return for the guy you got for trading Luka Dončić” … well, you’re not alone. But the prospect of getting anything approaching commensurate value for AD never really existed, and it effectively evaporated when he suffered yet another long-term injury the month before the trade deadline. Given the desultory state of affairs, it’s reasonable that Dallas’ post-Nico braintrust decided that the best play was just getting out of the Davis business altogether as quickly as possible — even if the package of picks and players coming back isn’t exactly worth writing home about.

You know who is worth writing home about, though? Cooper Flagg. And with Wednesday’s move — which saved the Mavs about $57 million this season, got them out of the luxury tax and under the first apron, created a $20.8 million trade exception, and increased their total cache of available draft picks from just three to eight — Dallas took a significant first step in the process of building its roster around Flagg. That’s not much, but it’s also not nothing.

(It’s also worth wondering whether the Mavs — who now have more flexibility to conduct even more business ahead of Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET buzzer, with vets like Daniel Gafford, PJ Washington, Klay Thompson and [whispers] Kyrie Irving still on the roster — are done dealing.)

Anthony Davis’ fit with the Wizards

Over in D.C., where the Wizards essentially made their version of the “pre-agency swing for a star-level big man” that the Utah Jazz pulled off with Jaren Jackson Jr. on Tuesday, the on-court case for AD seems pretty clean.

While the Wizards have been terrible since moving Beal largely by design, the straightest path to respectability and decency in the NBA is by fielding a defense worth a damn. In theory, a frontcourt of Davis and Sarr should immediately improve Washington’s rim protection in the half court; among 152 players to defend at least 100 shots at the basket this season, Davis ranks 11th in field-goal percentage allowed, according to Second Spectrum, and Sarr ranks 15th. That tandem paired with Bilal Coulibaly (6-foot-7 with a 7-2 wingspan) and Kyshawn George (6-8 with a 6-10 wingspan) would give head coach Brian Keefe enough length, activity and block/steal/deflection-creating capacity to potentially spark a rise up the defensive rankings — even with the diminutive and forever vulnerable Young on the ball.

Quarters might get a little tight on the other end of the court, where Sarr has shot just 31.4% from 3-point range over his first two pro seasons and we’ve got more than enough evidence now that Davis won’t space the floor; his jumper has all but deserted him since the bubble, when its appearance made him look like the best player on the planet for a second there. AD’s still an efficient scorer, though, averaging more than 20 points on 50% shooting during his curtailed minutes this season in Dallas, and Sarr has taken a significant step forward on that end in his second season, improving his finishing in the paint and above the break while also both getting to the free-throw line and making his freebies more often.

You can envision Young-Davis and Young-Sarr pick-and-rolls providing a fruitful basis for consistent offense, with Trae using his gifts for getting into the paint, winning the cat-and-mouse game with a retreating big in drop coverage, and threatening a floater to open up lobs and pocket passes to teammates rolling off the screen or lurking in the dunker spot, or sprays out to waiting shooters like George (42% on catch-and-shoot 3s this season), Bub Carrington (40.8% from deep off the catch) and rookie marksman Tre Johnson (37.5% on catch-and-shoot looks).

That’s all dependent, of course, on Davis actually staying on the court — something he hasn’t been able to do all that consistently for the last half-decade — and Keefe and his coaching staff being able to find the right balance to get the most out of the incoming vets without stalling the development of Washington’s young core. If they can do that, though — and if you squint pretty hard — you can see a team that’s got a chance at being significantly more consistent and competitive on a nightly basis next year than it’s been in a decade.

The question, of course, is whether “being roughly half-decent” is enough juice for the squeeze here. Five picks, salary relief and a scratch-off ticket in the super-athletic Johnson isn’t quite as paltry a price as the CJ McCollum-Corey Kispert package that landed Young. It’s also not all that much in the scheme of things for a Wizards team that didn’t need to include any of its top prospects — Sarr, George, Johnson, Coulibaly, Carrington, Will Riley — and that still controls eight first-round picks and 13 second-rounders in the next seven drafts.

That includes all of the Wizards’ own first-round picks besides this year’s, which is slated to go to the New York Knicks if it doesn’t fall within the top eight of the draft lottery. (If it doesn’t convey this season, the Knicks will wind up with Washington’s 2026 and 2027 second-round picks instead.) The Wizards enter Wednesday’s action at 13-36, tied for the NBA’s fourth-worst record, giving them a 99.3% odds of keeping that pick, according to Tankathon.

Here’s where we’ll note that Young, who’d averaged more than 20 points and 10 assists in 28 minutes per game in a five-game stretch before the Hawks traded him to D.C., has yet to suit up for the Wizards as he works through quad and knee injuries, and that Davis hasn’t played since Jan. 8 after suffering ligament damage in his left hand.

Given the importance of hanging on to that mid-to-high lottery pick in what’s reportedly one of the most talent-rich draft classes in recent memory, it seems reasonable to wonder whether either of the Wizards’ new “distressed asset” All-Stars will play much, or at all, for the balance of this season. What comes after this season, though, ought to prove interesting.

Davis, who turns 33 next month and has played more than 56 games just once since winning the 2020 NBA championship in the bubble with the Lakers six years ago, is set to make $58.5 million next season, holds a $62.8 million player option for 2027-28, and is eligible for a contract extension this summer. Young, 27, holds a $49 million player option for next season, and is reportedly open to an extension of his own.

What sort of dollar figures — and, perhaps even more crucially, what sort of years — the two incoming stars work out with Wizards president Michael Winger and general manager Will Dawkins will go a long way toward determining whether we wind up viewing these trades as low-cost, opportunistic additions capable of putting Washington on a path toward legitimate, sustained success … or, potentially, as just the next round of millstones dragging down the Wizards’ balance sheet, hopes and vibes. (Something the Mavs have learned a little bit about over the past year.)

The Pittsburgh Pirates are still attempting to make a big splash in free agency after all.

After watching Kyle Schwarber, Eugenio Suarez, and others come off the board and sign with rival National League contenders, the Pirates may improve an already strong portion of the team: starting pitching.

In a surprising turn of events, the Pirates are reportedly an “aggressive” pursuer of the best pitcher remaining on the market.

The Pirates are interested in two-time All-Star lefty Framber Valdez, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, to join a young and promising rotation led by Paul Skenes. 

Valdez, 32, owns a career 3.36 ERA over eight seasons with the Houston Astros. 2025 marks his worst ERA performance since 2019, posting a 3.66 clip with a 1.245 WHIP and 187 strikeouts in 192 innings. 

Framber Valdez, K’ing the Side. 🔨🔨🔨 pic.twitter.com/fbZww6Mon8

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 13, 2025

He earned an MLB-best two complete games but an MLB-worst 12 wild pitches in 31 starts.

Valdez would immediately become the Pirates’ No. 2 starter and solidify the Pirates rotation as one of the best in baseball.

Teaming Valdez with Skenes, Bubba Chandler, Mitch Keller, and Braxton Ashcraft could make the Pirates legitimate playoff contenders this season.

Two things could be attentive to Valdez.

The Pirates hired former Astros pitching coach Brett Murphy for the same position in Pittsburgh. The spacious left field and left-center field at PNC Park plays well for lefties and could be an opportunity for Valdez to reset his market on a one-year contract.

Pittsburgh has struggled to land viable free agents over the years and shown the willingness to overspend. Rosenthal noted that the Pirates may be being used as “a stalking horse” once more. 

“However, the Pirates again might prove to be little more than a stalking horse for a more competitive team willing to offer Valdez the type of short-term deal with opt-outs he seems likely to command,” Rosenthal wrote.

Valdez is also drawing interest from the Blue Jays and Orioles to stay in the American League.

It’s possible that signing Valdez could open the door for the Pirates to trade Keller for a third baseman, adding a front-line starter to the rotation, making Keller expendable and a valuable trade chip to complete the lineup.

Rosenthal noted that the Pirates remain interested in slugger Marcell Ozuna, who is primarily a DH and would complicate the team’s defense, but adds a former All-Star who hit 21 home runs a season ago.

The Pirates still have time to add offense, or another impactful starting pitcher, before the heart of spring. 

Pitchers and catchers officially report to Bradenton, Florida on February 11.

The Chicago Bulls keep making moves, this time dealing a player they should have traded well over a year ago in order to actually get something of value. 

That player is Coby White, whose contract status has been thoroughly covered on this site. The TL;DR version is this: The Bulls just traded him to the Charlotte Hornets at his lowest possible value, which has been a theme of theirs when dealing away players. 

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The trade itself is slightly complicated. 

On Wednesday, the Oklahoma City Thunder shipped out Ousmane Dieng to the Hornets for Mason Plumlee. Dieng was then re-routed to Chicago, leading to this total trade:

Coby White and Mike Conley Jr. went to Charlotte for Collin Sexton, Dieng, and three second-round selections. 

Let’s get into the trade-grade game. 

Charlotte Hornets: B+

This up-and-coming team just got a heavy upgrade in White, who is especially solid moving off the ball, and it did so without relinquishing much. 

The acquisition of White is Charlotte’s pre-agency play, as it can now enter the summer with the hope of re-signing the high-scoring guard, who now returns to his home state. 

White can start or come off the bench, providing the team with scoring, some playmaking and improved defense. He’s essentially a better version of Sexton, which has to be considered a win. 

Chicago Bulls: C

Look, we can talk about how the Bulls at least got something out of this deal, and that’s all fine and well. But when you consider White had enormous value a year ago and the Bulls failed to pull the trigger, this is what happens. 

The Bulls simply waited too long, again, which is underlined thoroughly by this post from Stephen Noh:

We shouldn’t celebrate that the Bulls finally got off their butts to act on the Coby White situation, when they should have done it so long ago. 

With the start of Spring Training Feb. 11 in Peoria, Ariz., the San Diego Padres are nearing the end of their offseason plans and beginning their final approach to the 2026 season. Although there have been no major league roster additions since December, the team has not been totally inactive. News broke late Tuesday that the lawsuit between Peter Seidler’s widow, Sheel Seidler, and the Seidler brothers named in her allegations (Matt and Bob Seidler) have settled the bulk of the suit.

The terms of the settlement have not been released and probably never will be but this development lends further support to the rumors than an imminent sale of the team is probably true. The rumor mill has been churning for the last month regarding multiple parties interested in the purchase of the team.

Although no specific names have been shared, it has not been hard to imagine that the team would be attractive to multiple people or groups that want to own an MLB team. Joe Lacob, owner of the Golden State Warriors, is the only person who has publicly expressed interest in buying an MLB team.

The rumors were further supported by the fact that Padres CEO Erik Greupner was willing to make a public announcement at FanFest. He said that the sale was proceeding successfully and that the new owner would be invested in winning and maintaining the current goals.

The lawsuit would presumably be a roadblock to that sale and with this settlement, it may be announced sooner rather than later. It would not be surprising that the final negotiations for the A.J. Preller contract could be delayed as a result of rapidly progressing sale negotiations. Let’s hope these rumors are true and resolution occurs before the season starts.

Minor league contracts

LHP Marco Gonzales signed a minor league contract with a Spring Training invite. He will earn $1.5 million if he makes the team and has the ability to earn $1 million more in incentives. Gonzales is 34 and is coming off multiple seasons of injury with the latest being a forearm strain in 2024 that required flexor tendon surgery and he missed the entire 2025 season. His last appearance in the major leagues was in 2024 with the Pirates. He started seven games and pitched 33.2 innings with a 4.54 ERA. In his six-plus seasons as a starter with the Mariners (2017-2023) he pitched to a 3.48 ERA.

RHP Andrew Thurman signed a minor league contract. At 34, the career minor league pitcher last played in the Atlantic League in 2025 with 25 games started. The Padres transactions page has him assigned to the San Antonio Missions.

RHP Michael Flynn is 29 and reportedly signed a minor league contract. He has played most recently in the Tampa Bay organization and has been a reliever. He is a sinker/cutter prominent pitcher with a low-90s fastball and a plus sweeper.

RHP Riley Pint is 29 and spent all of 2025 injured while in the Guardians organization. He last pitched in the major leagues in 2024 for Colorado. In his 3.1 innings for the Rockies he had a 21.60 ERA. Pint has a high-90s fastball and a mid-90s sinker as well as a sweeper and a slider.

Tatis launches his foundation

On the Friday before FanFest, Fernando Tatis Jr. hosted a gala dinner to launch his foundation benefiting financial literacy for young (17-22) athletes in both San Diego and the Dominican Republic. Many of his teammates were there in support and he also has the backing of MLB. The name of the foundation is Fernando Tatis Full Court Foundation.

Camp 44

Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove hosts a week of activities for his teammates before every season. For the fourth consecutive year, Musgrove brought multiple players into town before FanFest for team building and bonding. He shared at FanFest that they spent time at the PLNU lab as well as working out at Petco Park and Mission Beach. Besides pitchers, multiple position players also participated.

More broadcast rights are voided

Between six and nine more teams have joined MLB as their broadcast partner for the 2026 season. The Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers, Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds have all withdrawn from their contracts with FanDuel Sports for broadcast rights for the season. The contracts were voided due to non-payment of rights fees from the network to the teams. Six of those teams have formally approached MLB to broadcast their games with the Tigers, Braves and Angels final decisions not yet clear. The Tigers owner also owns the Red Wings of the NHL and the FanDuel Sports Network also has contracts with NHL and NBA teams, including the Red Wings. The Braves are contemplating launching their own network and the Angels have declined comment.

This is in addition to the already seven teams being broadcast by MLB and the total could be over half of the league, pending final decisions. The media rights disparity between the haves and the have nots continues to grow and further complicates the future CBA negotiations.

Padres farm system ranks last

Keith Law of The Athletic has ranked the Padres farm system as the worst in MLB. Due to the trading of eight of their top 20 players at the last trade deadline, the Padres top prospect is catcher Ethan Salas. Salas, 19, has not played since April and was inactive because of a low back stress reaction. This should be a pivotal year in his development as a potential major league player. His defense behind the plate has never been questioned but his offensive ceiling is a question mark at this point.

The rest of the prospect list remains questionable with a lot of young and untested players in the top of the list. The new season should provide a lot more clarity about the upsides of many of these players.

FanFest media interviews

The San Diego Padres always provide media time for the players who attend their yearly fan-based baseball celebration. There are always a few news items that come out of these Q&A sessions with local media. Some nuggets that stood out:

Craig Stammen – He emphasized communication and relationships as his emphasis early in his new role. He visited multiple players after being hired, including his first-ever trip to the Dominican Republic to see Tatis Jr., Randy Vasquez and Ramon Laureano. When asked about the player who will play first base, he designated Gavin Sheets as the first option with Will Wagner and Sung-Mun Song as other possibilities.

He shared his confidence in Luis Campusano as the player who has the best chance to win the back-up catcher position. He played with Campusano as a player and expressed his desire to see him be successful as a major league catcher and hitter.

Michael King – King said in both his media time and his pitcher forum appearance that A.J. Preller was the main reason he re-signed with the Padres. He has trust in Preller and his ability to build a winning team every year. That was his main priority in signing a multi-year deal. He also shared that Yu Darvish was involved in his contract negotiations and got him some extra money. He stated that the media should ask Preller about that.

A.J. Preller – He was asked about the comment King made and he referred to Darvish caring a lot about his teammates and the organization. He will do anything he can to help others, including offering to give up his own salary to make the team better going forward. He has always given his best as a player and his offering to void his contract is just another part of who he is as a teammate and a Padre.

Preller said there would be no cutting of payroll and the team intends to add before the season. At least a starter and a couple bats. His own contract situation is a work in progress and that is partly due to the fact that he is not focused on it. His focus is on building a team and getting ready for the season. The contract will come at some point. He specifically referred to the next couple weeks as a probable timeline.

Fernando Tatis Jr. – He expressed his happiness at starting his foundation and participating in Camp 44 this year. He repeated his statement from last FanFest that he wants to prove his ability to fans and baseball and has worked to fix the issues affecting him last season. In his comments during the Q&A during the player forum, Tatis said his goal is to win the league MVP.

Jackson Merrill – In his usual direct and honest fashion, Merrill acknowledged the difficult season he had in 2025 with the injuries and inconsistencies. He looks forward to a “consistent vibe” this season with Craig Stammen as manager, with no ups and downs. He emphasized his focus is on hitting the fastball and his swing is tailored to that goal. He will not focus on the Dodgers but on beating every team they face. He expressed it as an F-U mentality for himself and the team.

All the players interviewed used the word “Respect” in reference to their impression of Stammen. They all also shared that a younger and more relatable coaching staff will be welcomed and they have already been active in offseason work.