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.
“We’re going to have you back here once the playoffs start.”
“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.
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.
BREAKING: Left fielder Tyler Soderstrom and the A’s are in agreement on a seven-year, $86 million contract extension, the largest guarantee in franchise history, sources tell ESPN. The deal includes an eighth-year club option and has escalators that max it out at $131 million.
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.
Forward LeBron James, guarding Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard, and the Lakers have lost two games in a row for the first time this season, in part because of lackluster defense. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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.
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.
Lakers center Jaxson Hayes, left, foulds Clippers guard James Harden on a layup during their game Saturday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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.”
It’s been a rough start to the 2025-26 season for the Sacramento Kings.
As rumors swirl about who could be on the trade block, guard Malik Monk has been made available, according to Chris Haynes. Over the past few years, Monk has been one of the most reliable sixth men in the NBA, but has fallen out of the Kings’ regular rotation this season.
Sources: Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk, one of the most dynamic Sixth Men in the league, has been made available in advance of Feb. 5 trade deadline. pic.twitter.com/O8MblILHq6
Monk played just five minutes in the Kings’ win over the Houston Rockets on Sunday, and just 14 minutes off the bench in Tuesday night’s 136-127 loss to the Detroit Pistons. He had nine points, one rebound and one assist.
“One thousand percent,” Monk said Sunday when asked if he was confused by the decision to start bringing him off the bench, via the Sacramento Bee. “But it’s not my job to try to figure out why I’m not playing because I deem myself more than the whole, so I’ll just be ready when my name is called.”
Through 24 games this season, Monk’s minutes are down significantly from last year. Monk played over 31 minutes per game in 65 games last season, and this season, his minutes have dropped to barely 23. Along with his minutes, many of Monk’s other numbers have dropped as well. His points per game have fallen from 17.2 to 12.5, and shot attempts have gone from 14.4 to 10.3 so far this season. Monk has suffered in just about every major statistical category across the board.
Head coach Doug Christie, his coaching staff and the Kings’ front office have made it clear that Monk will not be part of any plans in Sacramento. A once-valued piece in Sacramento, Monk could be out of town within a matter of weeks if not sooner. Monk set new career highs in points, assists, rebounds, steals and blocks last season. Now, the nine-year veteran has become an afterthought in the Kings’ rotation.
The additions of Russell Westbrook and Dennis Schroder in the offseason, plus Zach LaVine coming over last season, has had a huge effect on Monk’s value in the eyes of those pulling the strings in Sacramento. Fourth-year guard Keon Ellis has also cut into Monk’s minutes and seems to be the preference over Monk moving forward.
With Westbrook and Schroder playing roughly 29 minutes each night and LaVine around 32, there just aren’t enough backcourt minutes to go around, which has resulted in the drop off for Monk. Prior to Haynes’ report, it had been rumored that Sacramento could look to unload some veterans from the roster. The first names that came to mind were Westbrook, LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, due to a reported “disconnect” between Christie’s staff and some veteran players.
Sacramento fell to 7-23 after Tuesday’s loss, which is good for last place in the Western Conference. If the Kings are looking to move toward a youth movement, they’ve got a ways to go and could be quite busy over the next two months.
There is still quite a ways to go in the 2025-26 NBA season, but the Oklahoma City Thunder are off to a historic start.
If they keep this up, they could be a legitimate threat to the Golden State Warriors’ single-season wins record of 73.
Only two teams in league history have won more than 70 games in a single season. The first was the Chicago Bulls during the 1995-96 campaign, when they won 72 games. The Warriors broke that record by one in 2016. The Bulls won the NBA championship in their record-breaking season, while the Warriors ultimately fell to the Cleveland Cavaliers during their Finals run.
It’s still early. A lot can change between now and April. But the Thunder’s campaign is definitely something to keep an eye on. Here’s everything you need to know about the Thunder’s quest to set the NBA’s single-season wins record.
OKC’s current pace: 71.1 wins
OKC’s last game
Most wins in NBA history, single season
73: Golden State Warriors, 2015-16 72: Chicago Bulls, 1995-96 69: Chicago Bulls, 1996-97 69: Los Angeles Lakers, 1971-72 68: Oklahoma City Thunder, 2024-25 68: Boston Celtics, 1972-73 68: Philadelphia 76ers, 1966-67
Thunder vs. ‘95-96 Bulls vs. ‘15-16 Warriors
Record after 30 games ‘25-26 Thunder: 26-4 (.867) ‘95-96 Bulls: 27-3 (.900) ‘15-16 Warriors: 29-1 (.967)
SGA vs. MJ vs. Steph Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: 32.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 6.6 APG (29 games) Michael Jordan: 30.4 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 4.3 APG (82 games) Stephen Curry: 30.1 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 6.7 APG (79 games)
OKC’s upcoming schedule
Dec. 25: vs. Spurs Dec. 28: vs. 76ers Dec. 29: vs. Hawks Full schedule
Tracking Thunder’s historic start
Largest average margin of victory in a season ‘25-26 Thunder: 16.1 ‘24-25 Thunder: 12.87 ‘71-72 Lakers: 12.28 ‘70-71 Bucks: 12.26 ‘95-96 Bulls: 12.24
Highest net rating in a season ‘25-26 Thunder: 15.9 ‘95-96 Bulls: 13.4 ‘24-25 Thunder: 12.8 ‘96-97 Bulls: 12.0 ‘25-26 Rockets: 11.9
The Brooklyn Nets have 52 jersey numbers worn by over 600 different players over the course of their history since the franchise was founded in 1967 as a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), when the team was known as the “New Jersey Americans”.
Since then, that league has been absorbed by the NBA with the team that would later become the New York Nets and New Jersey Nets before settling on the name by which they are known today, bringing their rich player and jersey history with them to the league of today.
To commemorate the players who played for the Nets over the decades wearing those 52 different jersey numbers, Nets Wire is covering the entire history of the franchise’s jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team.
And for today’s article, we will continue with the sixth of 15 people to wear the No. 34 jersey, big man alum Tom LaGarde. After ending his college career at UNC, LaGarde was picked up with the ninth overall selection of the 1977 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets.
The Detroit, Michigan native played the first season of his pro career with Denver. He also played for the Seattle SuperSonics, Dallas Mavericks, and in other leagues until until he signed with the (then) New Jersey (now, Brooklyn) Nets in 1984 for the final game of his NBA career.
During his time suiting up for the Nets, LaGarde wore only jersey No. 34 and put up 1.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.
All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.
With Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) taking a hiatus from competition and the turmoil of his personal life being examined online and in various forms of media, his good friend Dvalishvili (21-2 MMA, 14-3 UFC) has flown overseas to Spain for a visit.
It’s not a quiet one, either. Both men have been sharing images and videos online over the past few days, from training together to taking a ride in luxury vehicles in Madrid.
Check out some of the highlights from their ongoing pow-wow below (via Instagram):
In the posts, Dvalishvili still has bruising on his face from his bantamweight title loss to Petr Yan in the UFC 323 main event earlier this month. Despite the defeat, Dvalishvili’s historic year earned him MMA Junkie’s 2025 Male Fighter of the Year award.
Topuria, for his part, hasn’t competed since his knockout of Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 in June to claim the vacant lightweight belt. He was expected to return in early 2026, but his personal issues led to self-imposed time off, setting up Justin Gaethje vs. Paddy Pimblett for the interim 155-pound title at UFC 324 on Jan. 24 in Las Vegas.
Anthony Joshua did a lot of Jake Paul haters a favor by brutally knocking him out in the sixth round of their Heavyweight fight last weekend (Fri., Dec. 19, 2025) in Miami, Fla., leaving “El Gallo” with a broken jaw and a severe hangover of pain.
For his next challenge, “A.J.” will return to his roots of fighting professional boxers that are equal to him in size and skill level. One man who is eyeing a fight against the towering Brit is none other than former WBC Heavyweight champion, Deontay Wilder, who has been linked to a potential showdown against Joshua for a while now.
“Almost definitely [I’ll fight Joshua]. Hands down. I’m a fighter. He’s a fighter. I’m still active. He’s still active. And that’s one of the biggest fights people still want to see,” Wilder told Boxing Scene. “You know what I mean? That’s a big fight people still want to see. And like I said, we both are still in this business. And so as long as we’re still in this business, we must meet.”
Despite both being in the same division for over decade their paths have never crossed, which is a shame because at one point this was the fight to make. Unfortunately for Wilder, his stock has taken a bit of a stumble as of late by going just 2-4 in his last six fights, with his most recent win coming against Tyrrell Anthony Herndon this past summer.
Despite his struggles, Wilder caught the eye of Oleksandr Usyk — the current WBA , WBC, IBO, The Ring and IBF Heavyweight champion — for a potential 2026 showdown.
As far as Joshua is concerned, prior to his jaw-breaking win over Paul, he was on the wrong side of a knockout defeat of his own, losing to Daniel Duboisvia fifth-round stoppage in Sept. 2024. Before then he was on a four-fight win streak which included a knockout win over Francis Ngannou (see it again here).
Still, both men are still active and are trending upward. That said, do you still want to see these two hard-hitting big men finally get it on inside the ring?
Heading into the holiday break last season, Arizona sat at 6-5 with no signature wins on its resume. It was going to need a strong performance in the Big 12 in order to avoid missing out on the NCAA Tournament.
The Wildcats proceeded to tie for 3rd place in the league, reaching the Big 12 Tournament title game. That earned them a No. 4 seed for the NCAA tourney, where they made a third trip to the Sweet 16 in the past four seasons.
What a difference a year makes.
Arizona (12-0) is off to its best start since 2014-15, ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll for three consecutive weeks. The latest NET rankings, one of the main sorting tools used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee, have the Wildcats second behind fellow unbeaten Michigan.
Six of Arizona’s wins so far are against Quad 1 or 2 opponents, including five victories against ranked teams. The only other time Arizona had five ranked wins in nonconference play was 1987-88, when it reached the Final Four for the first time in program history.
BracketMatrix.com, which aggregates NCAA tourney projections, has Arizona a unanimous No. 1 seed (along with Michigan). If the Wildcats remain on the 1 line all season, which won’t be an easy task considering the Big 12 includes five other teams in the top 30 of the NET and two more in the top 50, they’ll almost certainly be the top seed in the West Region that will have its regional in San Jose.
Regardless of what region the UA gets placed in, it almost certainly will begin the tourney in San Diego. As long as the Wildcats get a top 4 seed they should end up playing the first weekend at Viejas Arena, where their 2022 NCAA tourney run began.
Last night I asked our usual weekly predictions question before a game, and as I suspected, it was the slowest response I have gotten in a while. With the holiday and the way the team has played this season, it’s no surprise. We won’t have as many responses as usual, but we will highlight the ones we did get. If you missed the initial post, please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
What are your predictions for the upcoming game between your Miami Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? Final score? MVP of the game? Other bold predictions?
Below is our meager selection of comments and thoughts on the PQOTD-
Jptapt is only concerned with the third. Maybe that take makes it only 1/4 as painful when the team loses.
The third quarter will suck?
Alpha6 has a comprehensive list of wishes. If there is a Santa for old dudes, maybe he’s listening.
What are your predictions for the upcoming game between your Miami Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?
Achane 110yds, 2 TDs
Ewers 290yds, 1 TD, 1 interception
Waller 87yds, 1 TD
Final score?
Bucs 38, Dolphins 🐬 28
MVP of the game?
TE Waller
Other bold predictions?
Defense: 3 sacks, 1 interception, gives up 120 yds ground… 310 air
NeenerWhacker should probably stop doing that to their neener, and has the Dolphins predictably losing.
Hungry dogs run faster, Bucs are playing for the division still.
This is a typical phins late season, meaningless game. Baker, who has struggled as of late will throw for 3tds. Dolphins 13, Bucs 24
MiamiItaliano has Miami hanging in there, but dropping the game to a team that still has something to play for.
Bucs pass defense isn’t much better than the Bengals. I expect Ewers to improve and learn from last week. Bucs need this game though. I’m hoping for a high scoring game that shows Ewers really wants the QB1 job. Dolphins defense is mentally checked out and lose the game.
Dolphins 28
Bucs 35
The Miami Ute has Miami showing how much they suck at halftime adjustments.
Blowout in the Bucs’ favor. Like always, the game will remain close in the first half but then the Bucs will make the necessary adjustments and run away in the second half.
Molly Polly II has Miami getting blown out while hoping that Ross is paying attention to how many of us are already over this season.
Bucs 41, Finz 17.
MVP: any fan who attends the game (hey Ross, you might take a good look at how many empty seats during the game). 🫣
Bold prediction: NonMagic Mike continues to display many reasons why he should start packing up his office!
Well, that’s our short list for this evening. Thank you to each of you who took the time to answer our PQOTD. Please join us tomorrow for our live game thread. Merry Christmas to everyone!
