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The Hawks have worked out a handful of prospects ahead of the NBA Draft, including Zaccharie Risacher, Donovan Clingan, and Reed Sheppard. However, one prospect that Atlanta hasn’t had the chance to work out is Alex Sarr.
“The Hawks have been unable to bring Alex Sarr in for a workout to this point, but the door remains open for that to potentially happen,” Jonathan Givony of ESPN writes. “Rival teams have largely viewed the Wizards as a landing spot for Risacher or Sarr, depending which direction the Hawks go.”
For much of the offseason, Sarr was considered the favorite to be the top pick in this cycle. The Hawks won the lottery, and Sarr remained the favorite among betting outlets and draft experts.
His ceiling is what made him so enticing, but things have changed over the last couple of weeks. Givony reported that other teams see Risacher as the favorite.
“While it appears the Hawks are far from making final decisions, many teams say their intel indicates Risacher remains the favorite at No. 1.”
Oddsmakers in Vegas see it that way too. Most betting outlets, like FanDuel, have Risacher as the favorite to be the No. 1 pick, followed by Alex Sarr and Donovan Clingan.
I question why the Hawks haven’t been able to get Alex Sarr in the building for a workout. It’s curious that Givony reports this as odds shift away from the 7-foot Frenchman, dropping him down the board and being replaced by Risacher.
The Hawks shouldn’t be interested in any prospect that isn’t interested in them, but not being able to get Sarr in for a workout is puzzling.
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The New York Knicks had one goal in mind entering the 2025 NBA offseason and it is clear that the goal was to upgrade their depth. Of course, the Knicks are coming off an impressive season that saw them reach the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000. Despite this, New York elected to fire head coach Tom Thibodeau and they replaced him with Mike Brown this offseason. New York has also upgrade their bench through free agency as they signed two veteran players in Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele, both of whom should have a large role next season as the Knicks try to compete for a top seed in the East. With these two signings earlier this summer, the Knicks have only one roster spot open and a former No. 1 overall pick has been linked to them over the last couple of weeks. That player is Ben Simmons and the 29-year-old guard may be nearing a decision after a report was released on Wednesday. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, Simmons is expected to make a decision on where he will play next season within the next week. “I’m told he’s probably going to make a choice in the next week. (Sacramento) Kings, (Phoenix) Suns, Knicks and (Boston) Celtics have all been connected to him,” Windhorst said. Of course, Simmons is no longer the All-Star caliber player that he once was but he proved last season with the Los Angeles Clippers that he could still be a key role player for a contending team. Simmons would be a solid fit off the bench for the Knicks due to his playmaking and defensive skills along with the fact that he could play either the point guard or either forward position for them. Despite this, New York would be taking a major gamble on Simmons due to his injury history but if he can stay healthy for next season, he could play a key role in helping the Knicks land a top seed.
Tua Tagovailoa addresses relationship with Tyreek Hill after controversial comments
Shortly after Miami Dolphins players reported for training camp on Tuesday, Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill suggested he wants to be "better as a leader" after he controversially subbed himself out of Miami's regular-season finale this past January and then told reporters he was "out." While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa addressed the Hill-sized elephant in the room. "I think there’s a lot more vulnerability with Tyreek," Tagovailoa explained, as shared by Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. "He’s conversating a lot more with the guys, not just about football, but about things off the field, being vulnerable about some of the things people know about his personal life and things of that nature. I think that’s the first step toward him building true relationships and a real connection with a lot of the guys in there." Following Hill's "out" comment, Dolphins general manager Chris Grier revealed that the 31-year-old speedster never requested a trade. While publicly apologizing to his teammates during a Super Bowl week interview, Hill directly said that Tagovailoa is his "guy." Hill also insisted at the time that he loves Tagovailoa. "Everybody makes mistakes," Tagovailoa added about Hill. "It’s just, some people, they’re in the spotlight, and their deals get pushed out more than some others. So you’ve just got to cut him some grace. That’s our teammate. We love him, but as a person, I think if you get to know him, you’ll love him too." Hill and Tagovailoa likely will need to be on the same page if they want to prevent the Dolphins from going through a franchise reset next offseason. At least head coach Mike McDaniel is reportedly on the hot seat this summer, while Tagovailoa's status beyond the upcoming campaign is up in the air after he suffered a third reported concussion since the fall of 2022 last season. "You guys aren’t the only people that heard that," Tagovailoa said about Hill's "out" statement. "...So when you say something like that, you don’t just come back from that with, 'Hey, my bad.' You’ve got to work that relationship up. You’ve got to build everything up again. It’s still a work in progress, not just for me but for everybody. But like I said, he’s working on himself, he’s working on the things he says he wants to get better with and do better on. So that’s the first step to me, so I commend him for doing that." As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the 2024 Dolphins at -275 betting odds to miss the playoffs. Those who believe the relationship between Tagovailoa and Hill is on shaky ground following Wednesday's developments may want to take a flier on such a wager before the odds change later this year.
Rafael Devers had telling comment about playing first base
Rafael Devers played first base for the San Francisco Giants for the first time on Tuesday, and his quote about playing the field likely will not sit well with Boston Red Sox fans. Devers said after Tuesday’s game that he prefers playing in the field as opposed to serving as a designated hitter. “It keeps me active. It keeps my head out of just thinking about the next at-bat,” Devers said, via Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle. “I’d rather be on the field than in the cage hitting all the time and thinking about the next at-bat.” Devers, of course, refused to play first base for the Red Sox after they asked him to. He felt disrespected after they moved him off third base to accommodate Alex Bregman, and thought the team went back on its word by later asking him to play first. To Red Sox fans, if Devers is best playing in the field and playing first would have helped the team, it will be baffling why he did not just do it when that would seemingly have been a preferable outcome for all involved. Devers went 2-for-5 in Tuesday’s 9-0 win over the Atlanta Braves, driving in a run in his first appearance at first base. It remains unclear how frequently the Giants plan to use him at the position, but the team might take note of these comments.
Jaxson Dart had worst start imaginable at Giants training camp
The New York Giants officially opened training camp on Wednesday, and the good news for Jaxson Dart was that the rookie had nowhere to go but up after his first play of practice. Dart’s very first pass of 11-on-11 drills was intercepted by third-year cornerback Nic Jones. Dart stared his receiver down the entire way, and Jones showed the former Ole Miss star why doing so in the NFL is never a good idea. The whistle blew after the interception, but Jones would have taken it the other way for a touchdown had the play been live. Like any rookie quarterback, Dart is going to make plenty more mistakes in training camp. Brian Daboll and the Giants’ coaching staff will be more interested in how Dart bounces back from them. The Giants traded up to select Dart in the first round and are very high on his ability. They plan to bring him along slowly, which Daboll seemed to reiterate again on Wednesday. Dart led the SEC with 4,279 passing yards last season. He threw 29 touchdown passes and is known for having a strong arm, but throwing windows get significantly tighter in the NFL. Dart will learn that as he gains more experience.
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