Month: January 2025

Heat could let Jimmy Butler walk instead of trading him

It’s been more like a drunken stumble than a mild trip-up for the Phoenix Suns since a 9-2 start to the season.

The reported link in the rumor mill between the Suns and Jimmy Butler’s Heat unhappiness is percolating because his situation with Miami is deteriorating as fast as Phoenix’s defensive abilities. We are in the new year and about a month out from the NBA trade deadline, and the friction between the sides has a lot of time to get worse.

We’ve already crossed into considering the mechanics of how a deal would work if the Suns truly decided to blow up this current Big 3 and direct attention to a pursuit of Butler, who Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro reported was interested in joining Phoenix weeks back.

But here’s another reason to hold your horses on wondering about Miami shipping Butler away.

The Heat have good reason to hold onto him and let him walk away by opting out this offseason and entering free agency.

That is, unless they receive a wild trade offer that Phoenix likely can’t put on the table, writes ESPN’s Bobby Marks:

If the Heat let the Jimmy Butler $48.8M salary this season expire (that is assuming he walks away from $52.4M), they would be well positioned to add to their roster this summer.

Miami would be $47M below the tax and have access to:

– $14M non-tax midlevel
– $5.1M biannual exception
– $50M+ in expiring contracts
– The ability to take back more salary in a trade

Heat president Pat Riley has already issued a warning shot toward Butler: That he will not trade the veteran forward, who is averaging 17.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game.

That was before Butler said Thursday that he’d be finding joy playing anywhere else in the NBA. Riley’s statement effectively acted as a pre-negotiation tactic warning other teams that they’re not going to get a marked-down deal to acquire Butler from Miami.

Marks adds the Heat must get both financial freedom and win-now components in a trade.

 

And let’s refresh you on why else the Heat targeting a Jimmy Butler-to-Suns trade doesn’t make sense

The Suns could potentially trade Bradley Beal for Butler and a smaller salary coming back Phoenix’s way. But for the Heat, that would prolong their salary cap nightmare.

Miami taking on Beal’s $53.7 million owed next year and $57.1 million player option for 2026-27 only kicks the can down the road, something the Heat likely don’t want facing a repeater tax penalty.

It would seem the Heat and Riley have the leverage to risk Butler opting into the $52.4 million left on his contract. That arguably could offer better financial flexibility over taking any trade package from Phoenix, even if the Suns burn a few second-round picks or that 2031 first-rounder available to trade.

This is the pain point in any Butler trade at all — before getting into the Suns specifically.

ESPN’s Tim Bontemps put it well here:

The other thing to consider: The argument of “it’s better to get something than nothing” no longer applies in today’s NBA. As we wrote last month, Miami does not want to be stuck with money it can’t move on its books in a Butler trade.

Whether Beal would waive his no-trade clause to join a Miami team that could remain somewhat competitive with him is in the background.

Whether the Suns see a combustible, injury-prone and offensively limited Butler joining Kevin Durant and Devin Booker as a fix for what ails them is the question. Owner Mat Ishbia, CEO Josh Bartelstein and president of basketball ops and GM James Jones will likely gauge that thought if this season continues to go south in Phoenix.



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Suns’ regression sets make-or-break stakes for January

PHOENIX — In the last seven weeks of 10 weeks into the 2024-25 NBA season, the Phoenix Suns have been one of the worst teams in the league.

Since Nov. 13, Phoenix is 6-15, the 25th-best win percentage (.286). Across that span, the Suns are 12th in offense and 26th in defense, via Cleaning the Glass’ numbers that eliminate garbage time. A 9-2 start that the efficiency charts said was fine offense and average defense carried by clutch-time prowess has indeed regressed to the mean.

On the season overall, the Suns are ninth in offense and 24th in defense. In Cleaning the Glass’ win projections that take into account a team’s efficiency differential and the win total that typically follows, the Suns sit at 36.4, 12th in the Western Conference.

For those brave enough to still find optimism in this season, Phoenix has dealt with lots of injuries, is 13-4 when Devin Booker and Kevin Durant play and is only 3.5 games back of the sixth seed for an automatic playoff spot.

But this most recent stretch, one we are halfway through that is full of light competition and has already featured some opponent injury luck, provides zero indication this group can figure out how to play together in enough time to still contend. Because remember, that’s what we are supposed to be watching. A team that has a chance to win a championship.

Phoenix is 3-9 over its last dozen that was kicked off by a loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, who are 2-26 since beginning the year 3-3.

There’s still time to turn it around. The last dozen games of this fortunate chunk of the schedule includes three games against teams above .500 and five versus squads who have yet to win 10 games.

But, man. Even just part of the way Phoenix is losing recently is demoralizing.

What’s gone wrong with the Phoenix Suns’ defense lately?

The Golden State Warriors, who sit 24th in rim frequency, picked Phoenix apart with simple buckets. You wouldn’t believe it by watching below, but the Suns actually defended well on the night. It was just these constant hiccups off great Warriors movement that made everything look easy.

There’s so much “that’s too easy” that I had to split the clips into three different sections.

Here’s the first quarter.

And the second.

Before things tightened up in the second half (sound familiar?), there were still had too many of these, particularly off switches on bigs.

This came on a night when the Suns only took 11 shots at the rim themselves. Phoenix is taking 23.4% of its shots at the rim, dead last in the NBA and nearly five percent lower than the 30th-place finisher last year (which was last year’s Warriors!). That figure is on pace for the lowest in Cleaning the Glass’ database since the 2007-08 Portland Trail Blazers.

How can the Suns get more?

“I think the randomness, getting different combinations in the pick-and-roll, I think maybe some more cutting and slashing away from the ball, taking advantage of I think two to the ball and then a hard guy rotating if and when we get it to the guy in the pocket,” Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer said after practice on Thursday.

To Budenholzer’s point, watch back some of those Warriors buckets again after reading that quote. Or see below at some of the similar scores Memphis had inside.

 

Clearly if this season continues down this path, even if it gets marginally better, we owe Frank Vogel a giant apology. A “I forgot our anniversary” level of apology.

Going beyond how the lack of on-court execution, organization and vibes seemed to be on him, with the vibes being the only thing that has improved (and with time for those to still sour), what he achieved defensively with last year’s far worse off personnel should be retroactively commended.

It’s not like the Suns made a mistake firing him. It had to happen. But on the nights he’s feeling petty instead of upset for the guys on the team he formed relationships with going through another struggle, I’m sure he’s getting a laugh out of this.

The drop-off in the defense by default is making things more difficult on the offense. Facing set defenses more frequently will always do that.

And with the combination of recent injuries to key reserves that space the floor and Phoenix’s need for more overall defensive energy/personnel, it is playing more of Ryan Dunn and Josh Okogie. The thing is, it has to happen and is the right call. The effect on the offense, however, is problematic.

The Suns’ spacing has cratered, and with Phoenix’s movement decreasing as well, it has been at times ugly. The turnovers are starting to add up even more.

These examples are not meant to absolve Durant, but rather emphasize how much his turnover problems can get further amplified by this.

Look at the Warriors’ help defense on these. An easy distinguisher is how many feet are in the key. Long-time readers will remember how opponents for the 2021-23 Suns would be dead in the water if even one foot was touching paint because of how great their spacing was.

In the next game, Dunn and Okogie tried to cut more but the problems persisted. Focus more on where those two are here instead of the defenders.

 

While these two games have been without Jusuf Nurkic (suspension), Phoenix plays two centers in he and Mason Plumlee who consistently show reluctance in finishing at the rim. This is nothing new for Nurkic but Plumlee used to be one of the most agile and springy bigs in the NBA before age caught up to him.

Plumlee is actually shooting a very good 75% around the basket, much higher than Nurkic’s 65%, per Cleaning the Glass. That, however, has come via passing up plenty of opportunities.

Dunn, a good short roll player at Virginia the Suns should use more in that role, makes a terrific pass here that Plumlee has to finish in the dunker’s spot.

Here’s another with poor Tyus Jones eating a turnover because of it.

Watching other average-to-below average centers match up with Phoenix emphasizes how much better it would be if it had someone of that caliber and how much of a Suns weakness it has become. Golden State’s Trayce Jackson-Davis produced 16 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, a steal and four blocks in 23 minutes (!) he dominated the interior for at an undersized 6-foot-9. Memphis’ Jay Huff gives the Grizzlies a stretch 5 element and was in the right spot defensively, hustling his ass off along with everyone else.

All of that is massively weighing down the offense because the usual baffling giveaways have not left us in the new season.

These are just some of the Suns’ issues as a team that can’t stay healthy and is suffering in other parts of the floor. The aforementioned next 12 games across the month of January will tell us if there’s progress being made, enough to believe a deep playoff run is still possible, or things continue moving south and it’s time for this era of Suns basketball to end.

Coincidentally, the stretch of games concludes 12 days before the trade deadline.



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Arizona Wildcats transfer updates: QB Braedyn Locke commits

The Arizona Wildcats landed Wisconsin quarterback transfer Braedyn Locke on Friday.

Locke, a sophomore who began his career at Mississippi State and played significant roles for the Badgers the past two years, has two years of eligibility left. He slots in as a backup to returning quarterback Noah Fifita for the 2025 season.

Locke took over for injured Wisconsin starter Tyler Van Dyke in September and threw for 1,936 yards, 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions last season. He completed 55% of his passes.

Another notable portal addition for the Wildcats is FCS All-American linebacker Blake Gotcher, who committed with a year of eligibility remaining after leading Division I with 162 tackles this past season.

The Wildcats have also landed Kansas State transfer and receiver Tre Spivey, a product of Hamilton High School in Chandler and son of former Arizona Diamondback Junior Spivey.

Tre Spivey caught 14 passes for 160 yards as a redshirt freshman this past year.

Fifita, who was not entered into the transfer portal, has announced he would return under new offensive coordinator Seth Doege.

Among Arizona’s biggest losses in the portal is linebacker Jacob Manu, who has committed to play at Washington in 2025.

He first announced his intention to leave on Dec. 10 and will have one year of eligibility remaining with the Huskies and former Arizona coach Jeff Fisch. Following a 2023 All Pac-12 First Team selection, Manu only saw seven games of action with a season-ending knee injury in October.

Manu’s school decision came after defensive backs Genesis Smith and Dalton Johnson exited the portal to return to Tucson next season. Smith, like Spivey, is also a product of Chandler’s Hamilton High School.

While Smith’s return keeps more talent at home, the defensive backfield has lost several key players. Starting cornerbacks Tacario Davis, Marquis Groves-Killebrew and Treydan Stukes, plus safety Gunner Maldonado, have hit the portal.

Davis is the most notable entrant for the football team so far. Before the 2024 season, he was projected as a potential first-round NFL Draft pick.

The junior finished 2024 with 43 tackles and six passes defensed.

Brent Brennan’s first year leading the Wildcats went far south of expectations with a good portion of the roster returning from a 10-win club a year prior. Arizona football was projected to finish fifth in the Big 12 but fell flat with a 4-8 record that ended with a 49-7 rivalry loss to Arizona State.

Here’s who is incoming and outgoing via the transfer portal by date.

Arizona Wildcats football transfer portal tracker for the 2025 offseason

Additions

RB Mike Mitchell (Dec. 28) — Utah

QB Braedyn Locke (Dec. 27) — Wisconsin

Edge Riley Wilson (Dec. 26) — Montana

WR Tre Spivey (Dec. 23) — Kansas State

OL Ka’ena DeCambra (Dec. 22) — Hawaii

OT Tristan Bounds (Dec. 22) — Michigan

LB Blake Gotcher (Dec. 21) — Northwestern State

RB Ismail Mahdi (Dec. 21) — Texas State

DL Deshawn McKnight (Dec. 20) UT Martin

OT Ty Buchanan (Dec. 20) — Texas Tech

OT Jordan Brown (Dec. 20) — Georgia Tech

S Dalton Johnson (Dec. 19) — Return to Arizona

WR Kris Hutson (Dec. 18) — Washington State

S Jshawn Frausto-Ramos (Dec. 18) — Stanford

CB Jay’Vion Cole (Dec. 16) — Texas

CB Michael Dansby (Dec. 15) — San Jose State

S Genesis Smith (Dec. 15) — Return to Arizona

EDGE Chancellor Owens (Dec. 14) — Northwestern State

WR Luke Wysong (Dec. 13) — New Mexico

Departures

OT Leif Magnuson (Jan. 3)

CB Marquis Groves-Killebrew (Dec. 26)

QB Adam Damante (Dec. 26)

TE Keyan Burnett (Dec. 20) — Kansas

CB Demetrius Freeney (Dec. 17) — Boise State

DL Keanu Mailoto (Dec. 16) — Boise State

CB Treydan Stukes (Dec. 11)

EDGE Nolan Clement (Dec. 11)

CB Tacario Davis (Dec. 11)

EDGE Cyrus Durham (Dec. 11)

OT Elijha Payne (Dec. 11)

LB Jacob Manu (Dec. 10) — Washington

S Gunner Maldonado (Dec. 10) — Kansas State

EDGE Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei (Dec. 10) — Washington

DL Nick Fernandez (Dec. 10)

DL Nick Fernandez (Dec. 10)

LB Kamuela Kaaihue (Dec. 10)

CB Emmanuel Karnley (Dec. 9) — Miami

EDGE Tristan Davis (Dec. 9)

OL Jonah Rodriguez (Dec. 9)

LB Kamuela Kaaihue (Dec. 9)

CB Demetrius Freeney (Dec. 8) — Boise State

WR Reymello Murphy (Dec. 8) — UConn

WR Jackson Holman (Dec. 8)

ATH Jai-Ayviauynn Celestine (Dec. 8)

RB Brandon Johnson (Dec. 8)

QB Anthony Garcia (Dec. 8)

OG Wendell Moe (Dec. 6) — Tennessee

OT JT Hand (Dec. 4) — Oregon State

RB Rayshon Luke (Dec. 3)

WR A.J. Jones (Dec. 3)

TE Dorian Thomas (Dec. 2)

DL Bryce Echols (Dec. 2) — Nevada

QB Brayden Dorman (Dec. 1)



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Who are the Arizona Cardinals’ opponents in 2025?

The Arizona Cardinals won’t know their official 2025 road map for some time. They do, however, have an idea of who they will be lining up against when next season rolls around.

These matchups include the Green Bay Packers, Cincinnati Bengals and Dallas Cowboys.

The San Francisco 49ers’ Monday Night Football loss to the Detroit Lions, which locked Arizona into sole possession of third place in the NFC West, helped with that.

While the two divisional foes could end up tied record-wise with a 49ers win this week at State Farm Stadium, the Cardinals hold the advantage in the tiebreaker department.

Even if they ended up with the same head-to-head and division records, Arizona would still have the better win-loss percentage in the common games played tiebreaker.

Because of that, Arizona will have to face three teams — Packers, Bengals and Cowboys — that finished third in their respective divisions on top of the normal slate of NFC West games.

Who else makes up the Cardinals’ 2025 opponents?

In addition to the aforementioned teams, Arizona is also slated to take on members of the AFC South and NFC South.

That includes a 2024 first-round matchup between Marvin Harrison Jr. and Jacksonville’s Brian Thomas Jr., who is pacing all NFL rookie pass catchers with 1,179 yards and 10 touchdowns this year.

A full look at the Cardinals’ 2025 opponents:

HOME

– San Francisco 49ers
– Los Angeles Rams
– Seattle Seahawks
– Atlanta Falcons
– Jacksonville Jaguars
– Tennessee Titans
– Green Bay Packers
– Carolina Panthers

AWAY

– San Francisco 49ers
– Los Angeles Rams
– Seattle Seahawks
– Houston Texans
– Tampa Bay Buccaneers
– New Orleans Saints
– Cincinnati Bengals
– Indianapolis Colts
– Dallas Cowboys



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ASU’s Cam Skattebo leads comeback, Texas pulls out win in classic

Arizona State football managed a heroic fourth quarter comeback and came one play short of reaching the College Football Playoff semifinal, but Texas pulled out the Peach Bowl win 39-31 in a double-overtime classic on Wednesday.

ASU running back Cam Skattebo unloaded the quiver on a touchdown pass, caught a 62-yard shot from Sam Leavitt, scored from the two-yard line and punched the ball in for a two-point conversion to bring ASU back from down 16 points in the second half of the fourth quarter.

ASU trailed Texas 24-8 with seven minutes left in the game, at which point ASU counted on its Heisman hopeful to step up in the brightest moment.

Texas had its chance to overcome Skattebo’s dominance with a 38-yard field goal at the end of regulation, but kicker Bert Auburn clanked the attempt off the upright to send the game to overtime.

In overtime, Skattebo followed a 16-yard Leavitt scramble — that fired up legend Jake Plummer on the sideline — with a go-ahead three-yard touchdown run with the assist from guard Kyle Scott.

ASU was one play away from a trip to the Cotton Bowl. Texas had its back to the wall but tied the game on fourth-and-13 with a 28-yard touchdown pass by Quinn Ewers to Matthew Golden.

The Longhorns quickly returned to the end zone on a pass to Gunnar Helm to open the second overtime, and they converted the mandatory two-point conversion.

Leavitt was intercepted on ASU’s next drive, as the Sun Devils found themselves on the wrong end of an epic football game, by far the most dramatic and compelling of the CFP.

“Now, there are no moral victories when the season ends. There’s no such thing,” head coach Kenny Dillingham said. “This should hurt and be painful. The locker room is dreadful right now, and it should be. If it wasn’t, something would be wrong. But at the same token, now that this is over, I really am going to challenge our guys to reflect on where it all started, because it really is remarkable. I won’t be able to sleep for a while. But I will reflect immediately, because it’s an incredible season.”

ASU turned around from 3-9 to 11-2 entering Wednesday game in which the team proved it belonged with the biggest names in college football.

” Crazy season … We just have a different level of passion and something that I’ve never been a part of,” Leavitt said.

Cam Skattebo, the quarterback

On fourth-and-two, Skattebo completed a 42-yard touchdown pass to receiver Malik McClain after a pitch from Leavitt. Skattebo rolled out to the 50-yard yard and threw a bomb nearly 40 yards down the field. McClain beat a pair of defenders to the end zone to cut the deficit to 24-14. ASU converted the two-point conversion to make it an eight-point game with 6:40 to play.

Throwing TD passes is not new for ASU’s do-it-all running back, as Skattebo delivered a dime to beat UCLA last season.

ASU got the ball right back on a Javan Robinson interception after Ewers attempted to go deep.

Cam Skattebo, the receiver

The very next play involved a deep ball from Leavitt to Skattebo that gained 62 yards plus an additional nine yards for a facemask. Skattebo gave a mean mug to the crowd after his helmet was ripped off.

“You give him the ball, crazy things happen,” Dillingham said.

Cam Skattebo, the running back

Three plays later, Skattebo pushed into the end zone to set up ASU for a game-tying two-point conversation attempt. The first try fell incomplete but a Texas holding call presented ASU the chance to drive Skattebo in from the 1-yard line on the following snap.

“I bet you nobody in this room thought we were going to even be close when we went down 17-3,” Skattebo said. “So we believed in ourselves. We believed in what we had going, and undeniable is what this team is about. … Everybody on this team believes in each other and that’s what kept us close.”

Skattebo had more total yards (passing, rushing and receiving) with 257 than Texas’ offense (250) by the two-minute timeout.

He broke ASU’s single-season rushing record in the third quarter, beating out Eno Benjamin’s 1,642 mark from 2018. Benjamin was on the sideline rooting Skattebo on.

Skattebo had been battling in the second half, puking on the sideline and coming back into the game after receiving fluids. Despite looking flush at time, Skattebo kept getting back out there and saving his best for crunch time.

“I drank too much water too fast and I was kind of feeling sloshy, and then felt better after,” Skattebo said.

He finished the game with 143 rushing yards, 99 receiving yards and 42 passing yards. Leavitt competed 24 of 46 throws for 222 yards and added 60 rushing yards.

Special teams and red zone woes put ASU in a hole, as the Sun Devils trailed 17-3 at halftime. Skattebo showed frustration on the sidelines during the first half, as Texas successfully limited his early impact.

The Sun Devil defense stepped up to open the second half with a three-and-out and a safety, but the offense struggled to find pay dirt. Ewers scrambled for a touchdown to take a 23-8 lead, but Texas elected to kick the PAT instead of a two-point conversion to potentially take a three-possession lead.

Missed targeting call

A reason Texas had an opportunity to win the game on a field goal came from a controversial non-call for potential targeting against Texas. ASU’s Melquan Stovall took a shot over the middle that led to a review, but targeting was not called.

ASU ended up having to punt the ball back to Texas, who marched down the field before missing the kick. Auburn missed two kicks in the fourth quarter.

Fourth-down woes for ASU

Fourth downs became an Achilles heel for the Sun Devils, who failed to come out with positive outcomes on three separate instances in the middle two quarters.

Leavitt was sacked on a fourth-and-10 inside Texas territory, a Carston Kieffer 36-yard field goal was blocked and Skattebo was stonewalled for no gain on a fourth-and-goal rush from the 2-yard line.

“We moved the ball pretty effectively actually, and we just needed to convert in the red zone,” Leavitt said. “I take accountability for a lot of stuff that happened. … That’s one thing I’m going to carry over into next year.”

Each of the drives ending with a turnover on downs lasted at least nine plays, meaning ASU was failing to pay off strung out offensive efforts.

Texas, meanwhile, had a scoring opportunity on each drive that made it to ASU territory.

ASU outgained Texas 510-375 and ran 37 more plays.

Season-ending loss comes hours after ASU coach Kenny Dillingham gets new deal

Though the season’s run has come to an end, ASU knows the coach who led the eight-win turnaround will be around for the long haul.

The new contract Dillingham received just over 12 hours in advance of the Peach Bowl added five years to the current deal, with the potential to reach 10 years based on performance incentives, Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro reported.

Many of the players at the top of the depth chart have already committed to return for next season, as well.

CFP outlook after Texas advances

The Longhorns await the winner of the Rose Bowl between Oregon and Ohio State.

On the other side of the bracket, Penn State advanced after knocking off Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. The Nittany Lions will have to wait until Thursday to know its opponent, as the Sugar Bowl between Notre Dame and Georgia was that killed 15 people in New Orleans.



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Sugar Bowl postponed after New Orleans attack

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame was postponed a day because of an attack about a mile away from the Superdome early Wednesday, when authorities say a truck driver deliberately plowed into a New Year’s crowd and killed 15 people.

The game, originally scheduled for 7:45 p.m. Central at the 70,000-seat Superdome, was pushed back to 3 p.m. Thursday. The winner advances to the Jan. 9 Orange Bowl against Penn State.

“Public safety is paramount,” Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said at a media briefing alongside federal, state and local officials, including Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry and New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. “All parties all agree that it’s in the best interest of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game.”

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter said the decision to postpone the game “was not done lightly.”

“It was done with one single thing in mind: public safety — making sure that the citizens and visitors of this great city, not only for this event, but for every event you come to in Louisiana, that you will be safe,” Carter added. “And we will use every resource possible.”

Landry said he had a message for those thinking, “Man, do I really want to go to the Sugar Bowl tomorrow?”

“I tell you one thing: Your governor’s going to be there,” Landry said. “That is proof, believe you me, that that facility and this city is safer today than it was yesterday.”

Hundley said work was underway to “set up a safe and efficient and fun environment” at and around the Superdome on Thursday. “We live in the fun-and-games world with what we do, but we certainly recognize the importance of this and support (public safety efforts) 100%.”

The Superdome was on lockdown for security sweeps on Wednesday morning, when people with offices in the home of the NFL’s Saints — including officials with the Sugar Bowl and Sun Belt Conference — were told not to come into work until further notice.

Some credentialed Superdome employees were permitted into offices by Wednesday afternoon.

The casualties occurred when a driver rammed a pickup truck into a crowd of revelers in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter early on New Year’s Day, injuring more than 30 people. The driver was killed in a firefight with police following the attack at about 3:15 a.m. along Bourbon Street near Canal Street, the FBI said.

The Georgia and Notre Dame football teams arrived in New Orleans on Sunday and have been staying at downtown hotels just blocks away from where the violence occurred.

Statements from the University of Georgia Athletic Association and from Notre Dame said both schools had accounted for all team personnel and members of official travel parties.

“To be in solidarity with those who suffer is to exemplify the spirit of Notre Dame,” said university president the Rev. Robert A. Dowd. “Today, we are in solidarity with all those impacted by this tragedy.”

A statement from Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks offered prayers for “everyone involved in this horrific event, and we are here to support them in any way possible.”

Georgia president Jere Morehead said the university confirmed that a student was among those critically injured. Morehead said the university is in contact with the student’s family to offer support.

New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno told WDSU-TV earlier Wednesday, before the postponement was announced, that the security perimeter around the Superdome was being “extended to be a larger zone.”

“So expect obviously extra security,” she said. “There are more police officers who are coming in.”

The Superdome, which is about 20 blocks away, also is scheduled to host the Super Bowl on Feb. 9.

The first Super Bowl after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, also was held in New Orleans, and there was a massive security perimeter for that game including street closures surrounding the Superdome and officers — including snipers — on the tops of surrounding high-rise buildings, as well as on the roof of the dome itself.

“We are deeply saddened by the news of the devastating incident in New Orleans,” the NFL said in a statement. “The NFL and the local host committee have been working collaboratively with local, state and federal agencies the past two years and have developed comprehensive security plans.

“These planning sessions will continue as they do with all major NFL events,” the statement continued. “We are confident attendees will have a safe and enjoyable Super Bowl experience.”



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Suns enter 2025 with reality check of a loss to Grizzlies

PHOENIX — The hits keep on coming for the Phoenix Suns, and you can decide for yourself if the injuries or overall play on the court is more concerning. The choice itself existing is foreboding.

Tuesday’s 117-112 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies was a “new season, same me” Suns performance.

Devin Booker returned after missing five games due to a left groin strain, and on the same night, Bradley Beal took a hard fall on his left hip that had him ruled out after the first quarter. This is the third straight time that in the first game back for Beal, Booker and Kevin Durant together one of them has gotten injured in that same game.

Tuesday marks the 22nd time in the Suns’ last 23 games when they have been unable to play a full game with that trio while also avoiding injury.

Yep, pretty concerning! But my own personal vote goes to the on-court product.

Because while the Suns (15-17) have been hit by injuries, they have had a handful of contests against opponents with serious absences as well. Tuesday was an extreme version of that and one that is a shining example of how to overcome it, making Tuesday a nice litmus test for the Suns that proves how far they have to go.

Memphis (23-11) was missing its star point guard (Ja Morant), starting center (Zach Edey), four top wings coming into the season (GG Jackson, Jake LaRavia, Marcus Smart and Vince Williams Jr.) and two quality rotational bigs (Santi Aldama and Brandon Clarke). The Grizzlies have somehow prevailed through 10-plus games missed for Morant, Smart and Edey, as well as only three games played for Williams and zero for Jackson.

Like the Suns, their depth has been tremendous, thanks to terrific finds like third-year undrafted guard Scotty Pippen Jr., No. 39 pick Jaylen Wells (on his way to a First Team All-Rookie nod) and fourth-year undrafted stretch big Jay Huff.

So what’s the difference? Why is Memphis able to win through all this?

It defends. The Grizzlies, despite lacking some of their best defensive personnel, are fourth in defense, per Cleaning the Glass.

And that undersells how a team you wouldn’t even rank in the top-10 or maybe even top-15 of offensive personnel sits sixth in offense.

When Booker was asked afterward what has ailed the Suns the most over the last month, defense is where he started, and his answer speaks to how the Grizzlies make all this work.

“I always like to hang my hat on the defensive end,” Booker said. “I think if we take care of that and we have a base coverage where we’re all attached, we’re all defending on a string at a high level, that the rest will take care of itself. We’ve been better in spurts, and then when our defense got better, I think our offense slowed down.”

What boosts that is the Grizzlies rack up extra possessions thanks to the NBA’s second-best offensive rebounding rate, and via the backbone of an excellent defense, they capitalize on it with the league’s top transition rate.

In Cleaning the Glass’ database that can chart how many points a team adds in transition off live rebounds, a.k.a. strictly misses by the opponent, Memphis’ league-leading number almost doubles the team in second and is the highest since the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors (in Durant’s first season there).

Point is, the Grizzlies leverage their effort and energy into tangible aspects that make them elite. Most of the time Phoenix’s shortcomings do not come down to a lack of trying but it’s not translating in ways that make it better.

The Suns were well aware beforehand. Head coach Mike Budenholzer shouted out Memphis’ “defensive will” and noted its pace as “elite” pregame.

Despite that, the most predictable 11-2 surge from Memphis began the game, and it controlled the game from there.

Memphis big Jaren Jackson Jr., a skilled and mobile 4/5, was shredding Phoenix’s pair of centers with his individual shot creation to get to floaters in the paint. Jackson had 19 of his 38 points in the first quarter. While the suggestion would draw much ire, that’s the type of matchup when the Suns would give Jusuf Nurkic (suspension) a few post touches, especially with Jackson’s proclivity for fouling. But without him, Jackson was too quick for Mason Plumlee and too strong for Oso Ighodaro.

Both 5s each picked up two fouls in the opening period, and with their struggles anyway, that forced Durant to play the 5 for chunks of the game.

Memphis only had nine available players to dress, so the stretch aspects of Jackson and Huff helped it craft together somewhat of a conducive rotation. Opponents with that aspect showcase a jarring difference with Phoenix, where spacing issues that have intensified since it has to play Ryan Dunn and Josh Okogie for the energy the duo brings.

The Grizzlies led for the entire game, extending their advantage late in the first half to 14 for halftime once they began getting 3s to fall. Desmond Bane had 13 of his 31 points in the second quarter.

Talent on the floor be damned, the extreme gap in both identity and execution trumped that. Memphis’ ability to get out and run off makes or misses was like house money all evening.

Phoenix’s intensity picked up considerably coming out of the half, forcing giveaways against a turnover-prone Grizzlies squad, but Memphis was not going to stop or get rattled by the switch-up. A 20-8 Suns opening to the third quarter was swatted away by a quick 7-0 Grizzlies counter.

A spark via Suns backup point guard Monte Morris got this one into a back-and-forth nature for the majority of the fourth quarter.

At a little over two minutes to go, a Memphis offensive rebound generated a Luke Kennard corner 3 to put it back up five. The Suns were able to do the same on the other end for Booker, but another snagged miss by Memphis was actually Bane grabbing his own for a layup. Booker’s attempted answer was a shot blocked at the rim by Jackson, and the Grizzlies actually slowly moved the ball up the floor to reset for what felt like the first time on the night.

But then no one on Phoenix picked up Memphis’ John Konchar, who floated into the lane in semi-transition uncovered for an and-one dagger. It was the clear moment when Phoenix ran out of gas both mentally and physically. It couldn’t even play a full half at Memphis’ level.

Jackson and Bane not only outplayed Booker and Durant, they severely outworked them. And that’s not to sit here and say the Suns’ duo lacked effort. But the energy Memphis’ pair played with was three games worth. Both were constantly around the ball, and when they had it, were attacking downhill with extreme regularity.

Jackson ended up with 38 points (12-for-23), 10 rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block in 38 minutes while Bane added 31 points (13-for-25), five rebounds and seven assists.

Durant was 11-of-19 for 29 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, a steal and two blocks. Booker had his worst game of the year, shooting 4-for-20 with 16 points, four rebounds and nine assists. The Suns are clearly facing problems that are too big to overcome on the average NBA workrate. They are going to have to start outworking teams and develop some resolve to pick up enough wins to automatically make the playoffs. And it starts with those two.

For Booker’s return, the frequency of groin or hamstring injuries in his left leg around this point of the season makes the first few games for him particularly nerve-wracking, as any re-aggravation of the injury would sideline him for a substantial amount of time, like in the 2022-23 season.

Phoenix is now 13-4 when he and Durant play together, which isn’t quite the most reliable number since most of those games came before the Suns started struggling immensely in mid-November. The Suns are now 6-15 since Nov. 13, the larger sample than the 9-2 beginning. This is who they are at the moment. A bad team.

If you need any proof of how rough things are for the Suns right now, Tyus Jones had five turnovers in this game. Even the NBA’s premier assist-to-turnover ratio dynamo stood no chance to combat Phoenix’s turnover plague. It is only the fifth time in Jones’ career he’s had more than three in a game, per Stathead.

The left ankle sprain sustained by Royce O’Neale in Saturday’s loss has indeed sidelined him, with a re-evaluation timeline set that will keep him out of the lineup for at least five games. Grayson Allen, meanwhile, was initially listed as probable to return after a four-game absence in concussion protocol. His left shoulder, however, started flaring up Tuesday morning and he was out for soreness in that shoulder.

Allen has not been able to find his footing this year due to injuries. Achilles soreness had him literally start the year slow, with a visible lack of mobility before a sore right hamstring kept him down for two later games. Right after that short stint out, Allen started to look like the very impactful role player he was last year, and then his collision in the Dec. 21 loss was the latest roadblock.

To end, a question to Budenholzer on a few recent losses including a dramatic change in intensity after a slow start echoed not only the biggest problem for this Suns team, but the biggest problem for the 2023-24 Suns as well.

“Every game is different,” he said. “We get different questions. We’ve had tough third quarters, we’ve had tough starts — it’s playing 48 minutes. We gotta find a way to play 48 minutes. Tonight we were better in the third quarter. I think it’s just finding that way to be good, from start to finish. More the 48 minutes. There’s just not enough of those that we can hold our hat on right now.”



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