The Athletics and left fielder Tyler Soderstrom have agreed to a seven-year, $86 million contract extension, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Thursday. 

The deal would be the largest guarantee in franchise history. It includes an eighth-year team option and escalators that could max out the contract at $131 million, according to the report.

The contract for Soderstrom comes with a lucrative pay raise and long-term security. He was previously slated to enter 2026 on a one-year, $820,000 deal. For the A’s, it secures the services of one of their key young players as they prepare for their move to Las Vegas. 

Soderstrom, 24, had a breakout campaign in 2025 in his third MLB season and first as a full-time starter for the A’s. In 158 games, Soderstrom slashed .276/.346/.474 with 25 home runs, 93 RBI and 8 stolen bases.

The A’s are scheduled to complete their move from Oakland to Las Vegas in 2028. In the interim, they’ll play in West Sacramento, California. When they arrive in Las Vegas, Soderstrom projects as one of the faces of the franchise. 

The A’s made the deal days after acquiring former All-Star second baseman Jeff McNeil from the New York Mets. They’re coming off a 76-86 season and a fourth-place finish in the AL West.

The Athletics and left fielder Tyler Soderstrom have agreed to a seven-year, $86 million contract extension, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Thursday. 

The deal would be the largest guarantee in franchise history. It includes an eighth-year team option and escalators that could max out the contract at $131 million, according to the report.

The contract for Soderstrom comes with a lucrative pay raise and long-term security. He was previously slated to enter 2026 on a one-year, $820,000 deal. For the A’s, it secures the services of one of their key young players as they prepare for their move to Las Vegas. 

Soderstrom, 24, had a breakout campaign in 2025 in his third MLB season and first as a full-time starter for the A’s. In 158 games, Soderstrom slashed .276/.346/.474 with 25 home runs, 93 RBI and 8 stolen bases.

The A’s are scheduled to complete their move from Oakland to Las Vegas in 2028. In the interim, they’ll play in West Sacramento, California. When they arrive in Las Vegas, Soderstrom projects as one of the faces of the franchise. 

The A’s made the deal days after acquiring former All-Star second baseman Jeff McNeil from the New York Mets. They’re coming off a 76-86 season and a fourth-place finish in the AL West.

The New York Knicks trailed by 17 points in the fourth quarter before point guard Jalen Brunson came through in a big way. Brunson’s 13-point fourth quarter helped lead the Knicks to a dramatic 126-124 comeback road win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Brunson finished the game with 34 points and four assists. Karl-Anthony Towns struggled against Cleveland’s twin-tower lineup. KAT had 11 points but scored a crucial last-minute put-back to help seal the game for the Knicks.

Despite another 30-point performance from last year’s NBA Clutch Player of the Year, the Knicks’ bench played a key role in the comeback. What was once an Achilles’ heel for the Knicks during the Tom Thibodeau era has become an asset under head coach Mike Brown. 2021 Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson finished the game with 25 points and five 3-pointers.

[Get more Knicks news: New York team feed]

Second-year point guard Tyler Kolek had another strong showing, contributing 16 points, nine assists and going 4-for-5 from beyond the arc. Reserve center Mitchell Robinson may not have scored, but his 13 rebounds, including eight offensive boards, kept possessions alive.

Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 34 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, while Darius Garland added 20 points and 10 assists for a double-double. Evan Mobley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds off the bench in his first game back from a five-game absence due to a Grade 1 left calf strain. Jaylon Tyson also added 16 points off the bench.

Despite the close score, both teams are heading in opposite directions. The Knicks currently sit second in the East at 21-9. They are the Emirates NBA Cup champions, and their 15-2 home record trails only OKC.

The Cavaliers are 17-15, ranking seventh in the East. They’ve gone 4-6 in their last 10 games. The Knicks will play the Hawks in their next game on Saturday, while the Cavaliers will face the Houston Rockets on the same day.

The New York Knicks trailed by 17 points in the fourth quarter before point guard Jalen Brunson came through in a big way. Brunson’s 13-point fourth quarter helped lead the Knicks to a dramatic 126-124 comeback road win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Brunson finished the game with 34 points and four assists. Karl-Anthony Towns struggled against Cleveland’s twin-tower lineup. KAT had 11 points but scored a crucial last-minute put-back to help seal the game for the Knicks.

Despite another 30-point performance from last year’s NBA Clutch Player of the Year, the Knicks’ bench played a key role in the comeback. What was once an Achilles’ heel for the Knicks during the Tom Thibodeau era has become an asset under head coach Mike Brown. 2021 Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson finished the game with 25 points and five 3-pointers.

[Get more Knicks news: New York team feed]

Second-year point guard Tyler Kolek had another strong showing, contributing 16 points, nine assists and going 4-for-5 from beyond the arc. Reserve center Mitchell Robinson may not have scored, but his 13 rebounds, including eight offensive boards, kept possessions alive.

Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 34 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, while Darius Garland added 20 points and 10 assists for a double-double. Evan Mobley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds off the bench in his first game back from a five-game absence due to a Grade 1 left calf strain. Jaylon Tyson also added 16 points off the bench.

Despite the close score, both teams are heading in opposite directions. The Knicks currently sit second in the East at 21-9. They are the Emirates NBA Cup champions, and their 15-2 home record trails only OKC.

The Cavaliers are 17-15, ranking seventh in the East. They’ve gone 4-6 in their last 10 games. The Knicks will play the Hawks in their next game on Saturday, while the Cavaliers will face the Houston Rockets on the same day.

Knicks wing Josh Hart suffered an ankle injury midway through the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday and left for the locker room.

Hart was driving down the lane in transition and stepped on an opposing player’s foot going for a layup, appearing to roll his ankle.

Despite being in clear pain, he stayed in to shoot two free throws and made both. 

Hart then limped to the locker room and was subbed out for Tyler Kolek.

New York trailed 107-95 with 7:43 remaining in the game at the time of the injury, but were able to pull off an improbable 17-point fourth-quarter comeback to beat Cleveland, 126-124.

Steph Curry rocks Klay Thompson’s shoes during Christmas Day game vs. Mavericks originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Since parting ways with Under Armour in November, sneaker free agent Steph Curry has put a lot of thought into the shoes he wears when he arrives at the arena, when he warms up and when he plays in the games.

And Christmas Day was no different for the Warriors superstar.

After arriving in Kobe Bryant’s “Yellow Toe” Player Edition of Allen Iverson’s Reebok Question kicks and warming up in his original 2010 Nike Christmas sneakers, Curry wore Klay Thompson’s KT11 shoes during the actual game.

Curry and Thompson spent 13 years and 11 seasons as Warriors teammates before the latter asked out and was traded to the Mavericks following the 2023-24 NBA season.

While they no longer share the same backcourt, the love between the Splash Brothers remains unbreakable.

Before Thursday’s game, Curry and Thompson shared a quick embrace during their respective pregame warmup routines.

There’s rhyme and reason behind just about everything Curry does, and Thursday’s gesture clearly was a tribute to his former running-mate and lifelong friend.

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Draymond Green perfectly claps back after Charles Barkley shades Warriors originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Charles Barkley wasn’t in the Christmas spirit on Thursday morning.

The “Inside The NBA” Grinch threw shade at the Warriors while welcoming Draymond Green to ABC’s telecast before the New York Knicks’ game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“We’re going to have you back here once the playoffs start,” Barkley told Green, signifying that he believes the Warriors will miss the first round of the NBA playoffs.

“Shaq, we’ll bring our rings and share them with Chuck,” Green said in response to Barkley.

Barkley is the most well-known Warriors detractor, and even after they won four NBA titles in the last 11 seasons — four more than he ever won — he still takes at them whenever he can.

But Green, a prolific trash-talker, has found a way to take shots at Barkley.

Green and Shaquille O’Neal, Barkley’s “Inside The NBA” co-host, have been doing a “Four Rings Handshake” ever since the Warriors won the 2022 NBA championship, a not-so-subtle jab at Barkley.

“It was always to pick on Charles … it’s so fun picking on Charles,” Green told former co-host Baron Davis on “The Draymond Green Show” in May. “And Chuck’s such a good sport about everything and funny as hell.”

Entering Thursday’s Christmas Day clash with the Dallas Mavericks, the Warriors hold the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed, which would mean they would have to escape the NBA play-in tournament to secure a playoff spot.

Green and the Warriors made it out of the play-in tournament last season and then upset the No. 2-seeded Houston Rockets before falling to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round after Steph Curry sustained a hamstring injury in Game 1 of that series.

If the Warriors can replicate that success this season, Green won’t join Barkley until at least May.

But if Green has it his way, in a dream scenario, he never joins Barkley in the studio this spring as he helps lead the Warriors on a magical run to a fifth NBA title.

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Tyler Soderstrom, Athletics reportedly agree to seven-year, $86M contract originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Athletics reportedly have locked up slugger Tyler Soderstrom.

The 24-year-old left fielder and the A’s have agreed to a seven-year, $86 million contract extension, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Thursday on Christmas Day, adding that the deal includes an eighth-year club option with escalators that max out its value at $131 million.

It’s quite the Christmas gift for A’s fans and Soderstrom as the largest guarantee in franchise history.

The deal shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to fans of the Green and Gold, as manager Mark Kotsay recently emphasized the organization’s desire to keep its young core together for the foreseeable future — specifically naming Soderstrom, who took a huge leap in 2025, as part of that group.

“There’s a big effort there to keep this group together, there really is. I know ownership is making that effort…” Kotsay told reporters at the MLB Winter Meetings earlier this month. “If you look at the group prior to this that you could identify as a group you want to move forward with, the group that came together in ‘17 and ‘18 and ‘19 – the resources weren’t there to keep that group together. 

“I think there’s a vision and a future here going forward with this group that we’re able to at least get those opportunities out in front of these players. At the same point, it takes two to come to the table and reach that agreement and make that commitment.” 

Soderstrom and the A’s appear to have had a great conversation at said table, with the franchise-record deal coming on the heels of a campaign where he moved from first base to the outfield and made waves with both his glove and his bat.

In his third MLB season, Soderstrom slashed .276/.323/.431 with 25 home runs and 93 RBI. He also was an American League Gold Glove finalist for left field after being drafted as a catcher by the Athletics in 2020 and opening the 2025 campaign as the team’s starting first baseman.

Soderstrom’s move to the outfield proved beneficial — and, of course, made way for first baseman Nick Kurtz, who went on to win AL Rookie of the Year.

With Soderstrom on the A’s to stay, the team’s attention now will turn to extending the rest of its young core.

It’s not the lineups, the injuries or necessarily the system. The cause of the Lakers‘ defensive demise is a thousand little decisions gone wrong.

“It comes down to just making the choice,” coach JJ Redick said after the Lakers gave up 132 points in a blowout loss to the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. “It’s making the choice. There’s shortcuts you can take or you can do the hard thing and you can make the second effort or you can sprint back or you can’t. It’s just a choice and there’s a million choices in a game, and you’re very likely not gonna make every choice correctly. But can you make the vast majority of ’em correctly? It gives you a chance to win.”

Coming off back-to-back losses for the first time this season, the Lakers (19-9) are ranked 28th in defensive rating in the last 14 games entering a Christmas Day showcase against the Houston Rockets at 5 p.m. PST at Crypto.com Arena.

The Lakers, without any individual shutdown defenders, need a perfectly executed team defense to compete. But 15 different starting lineups in 28 games has delayed some of the team’s ability to build continuity. The Lakers have had their full complement of 14 standard contract players for two games.

Forward Rui Hachimura (groin) and Luka Doncic (leg) could return Thursday. Guard Gabe Vincent, one of the team’s top defensive options on the perimeter, will miss his fourth game with lower-back soreness. Center Jaxson Hayes tweaked his left ankle in the second quarter of Tuesday’s loss and didn’t return.

The Rockets (17-10) limp into the Christmas Day blockbuster with their own struggles. The team thought to be one of the few who could challenge Oklahoma City in the West has lost five of its last seven games. Three of the losses were in overtime and four came against teams currently out of the play-in picture, including Tuesday’s loss to the Clippers.

Read more:Austin Reaves’ return can’t save Lakers from dismal defensive effort in loss to Suns

Led by Kevin Durant’s 25.2 points, the Rockets are a statistical anomaly in the sped up, possession-maximizing modern NBA. They have the third-ranked offense in the league despite being one of the slowest. They shoot the fewest three-pointers per game, but make them at a 40% clip that ranks second, and dominate the glass with NBA-leading 48.7 rebounds and 16.1 offensive rebounds per game.

Houston’s physicality and expertise on the boards could be especially worrisome for a team that still has to consciously choose defense on a possession-by-possession basis instead of consistently living up to a standard of playing hard.

“There’s really no defense, no scheme we can do when we’re giving up offensive rebounds in crucial moments like we are, our [opponents] are getting wherever they want on the court,” guard Marcus Smart said after Tuesday’s loss. “And there’s no help, there’s no resistance, there’s no urgency. … It’s on us.”

The Suns grabbed 12 offensive rebounds against the Lakers on 35 missed shots, an offensive rebounding rate of 34.3%. After the Suns scored a three-pointer by twice grabbing offensive rebounds off tipped balls, Lakers players had an animated discussion in a timeout with Smart was gesturing toward center Deandre Ayton about tipping rebounds. Ayton, who finished with 10 rebounds and 12 points, and Smart ended the timeout with a high-five.

“[I need to] just continue to talk to guys, even though sometimes they might not want to hear it,” said Smart, a free-agent addition the Lakers coveted for his leadership and tenacity on defense. “Especially when we losing, nobody wants to hear it, myself included, but also understand that it’s integral for us to hear those things, to see and to be able to talk to one another and figure it out as players on the court, because we’re the ones out there.”

Redick intentionally built in moments for players to connect and communicate during every timeout this season before coaches speak. The strategy was meant to encourage players to take a larger leadership role. “Championship communication” was one of the team’s three pillars.

Along with “championship shape,” Redick also asked his team to build “championship habits.” Living up to the mantras is easier said than done.

“It’s not the easy choice,” Redick said. “It’s human nature. … We do it on a daily basis. We make easy choices cause it’s comfortable. Comfortable doesn’t win.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.