Let the trade deadline drama begin in the NBA.

The first big domino fell Sunday when the Brooklyn Nets reportedly moved disgruntled star Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks, for Spencer Dinwiddie and a handful of draft capital.

However, NBA correspondent Marc Stein is reporting Monday that the deal is still not official and that a third team may enter the fold, namely the Toronto Raptors.

Stein is reporting that the Nets have “explored the feasibility” of packaging the newly acquired Dinwiddie with draft capital in hopes of acquiring Raptors point guard Fred VanVleet.

VanVleet, along with almost every player on the Raptors roster, has been the centre of trade rumours for the past month, as the Raptors continue to remain in limbo about their team’s future.

In fact, ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Monday that the majority of trade discussions just three days before Thursday’s deadline revolve around the Raptors.

What Toronto decides to do remains to be seen, but the market is clearly there should they decide to be sellers.

Stein also reported Monday that the Nets are also very interested in Raptors star Pascal Siakam, though Toronto seems reluctant to part ways with its forward from Cameroon.

The Raptors just finished up a season-long road trip with a 4-3 record, and currently sit 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 25-30 overall record. They are just a half game out of the conference’s final spot in the NBA’s play-in tournament.

And while it’s undecided whether they will be buyers or sellers over the next few days, what is clear: they have some chips to play with.

The NBA’s trade deadline is this Thursday at 3 p.m. ET.

More from Sportsnet

Advertisement

NBA Trade Deadline 2023: What offers the Raptors should (and shouldn’t) consider

As Irving unleashes chaos on the league, Raptors could benefit in the long run

.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr);
gap: 20px;
}

.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper a {
pointer-events: none;
cursor: default;
text-decoration: none;
color: black;
}

Source link

Pitchers and catchers of the Los Angeles Angels are scheduled to report on February 15.

That’s nine days from now.

Yes: baseball is almost back.

If we have waited this long, might as well wait a few more days!

When it comes to the Angels, everybody wants to see Shohei Ohtani in action.

He was the 2021 AL MVP and the runner-up in 2022 for a reason: he is a uniquely dominant baseball player.

Angels fans who want to watch him in spring training will need to do it quick, though.

The man has a commitment to play for his country, Japan, during the World Baseball Classic.

As a result, he will leave camp much earlier than anticipated.

“Shohei Ohtani will be at Angels camp until around March 1, and will make one start. He then leaves for Japan and the WBC, per Perry Minasian,” Angels insider Sam Blum tweeted.

Shohei Ohtani will be at Angels camp until around March 1, and will make one start. He then leaves for Japan and the WBC, per Perry Minasian.

— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) February 4, 2023

The 2023 edition of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) will be played from March 8 to March 21.

It means Ohtani will be in Japan’s camp for a week before the official start of the competition.

The Japanese were the winners of the first two editions of the classic, in 2006 and 2009.

However, Ohtani was just a kid when they both occurred, and wants his first taste of meaningful international competition.

He also wants to make sure Japan returns to the highest place in the podium.

Angels fans will get to enjoy his talents for the whole 2023 season (or until he gets traded, which is a possibility).

Most of his March, however, will have him focused on the WBC.

The post Angels GM Shared A Shohei Ohtani Spring Training Update appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source link

Nick Wright, Chris Broussard and Kevin Wildes react to news the Dallas Mavericks and Brooklyn Nets have agreed to a deal that will send Kyrie Irving to Dallas and Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and draft compensation to Brooklyn via trade. The First Things First crew also react to news the Phoenix Suns are interested in Kevin Durant and LeBron James’ “it must be me” tweet immediately following the Kyrie to Mavs news.



Source link