Daily Archives: July 23, 2022

Who were the Minnesota Timberwolves competing against when they traded three playoff rotational players and the rights to seven of their first-round draft picks from this decade for 30-year-old center Rudy Gobert?

If you are the head of basketball operations on the other end of the phone, all it takes is one new ownership group or empowered executive desperate to make a splash, or both, to outbid a player's value. A reckless negotiation should never set a market, but the 2019 trade of Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers, who also were not seriously negotiating against anyone, promoted a trend of unprotected pick-heavy packages.

The Brooklyn Nets, who are canvassing the market in the aftermath of Kevin Durant's trade request, are learning the hard way that there are only so many imprudent front offices. The Nets can and have asked for Scottie Barnes as the headliner of a deal that includes even more draft equity than the Timberwolves spent. That doesn't mean Toronto Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri has to meet their request.

General managers have the option to say, "No."

Ujiri knows. He waited out the market to obtain Kawhi Leonard in 2018. The San Antonio Spurs sought pick-centric packages for him four years ago, but the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers were among the suitors who refused to mortgage their future for a superstar with one year remaining on his contract, so the Raptors kept their offer to DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a protected first-round pick.

Any price might have been worth the cost considering Toronto won the title and that is the argument you will hear in L.A., where the latest championship banner was unfurled before a bleak future. The Raptors may not have beaten the healthy Golden State Warriors in 2019, or the Lakers may not have won without a four-month layoff in 2020, but they did, so there is no second-guessing the moves. They won their coin tosses.

That is what all these draft pick hauls are at their best, a coin flip.

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At their worst, they feel like a two-headed coin. Three unprotected first-round picks and a pick swap felt like an overpay from the moment the Nets dealt them to the Boston Celtics for an aging Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce in 2013. That the Celtics turned those picks into Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and four Eastern Conference finals appearances in the decade since makes it look worse. Danny Ainge won his coin tosses.

The former Celtics executive turned Utah Jazz decision-maker was also on the other side of the Gobert deal, and he will hope to flip his picks into All-Stars again. He could just as easily be left empty-handed.

Talent evaluation helps, but we saw the Sixers choose Markelle Fultz and Ben Simmons over Tatum and Brown. That alternate universe does not excuse the Garnett and Pierce trade, but it softens the losses.

If pick-laden trades truly were a 50-50 proposition, the Nets are due for another win. As ESPN's Zach Lowe recently detailed, the six trades sending three or more future first-round picks to one team since 2019 equal the number of similar deals in 43 years prior. Brooklyn has been involved in three of those already; Durant could make it four. The first of them came in 2004, when the Denver Nuggets paid three first-round picks in a sign-and-trade for Kenyon Martin. The Nets turned two of those picks into Vince Carter five months later.

Brooklyn's recent trade of three first-round picks and four swaps for James Harden has yet to bear fruit for the Houston Rockets, but it hasn't much helped the Nets, either. Brooklyn still has Simmons, Seth Curry and two future first-round picks to show for Harden, which is more than Houston can say to date.

The first of the four swaps the Nets sent to the Rockets never conveyed, and the next isn't likely to either. Houston selected Tari Eason at No. 17 in June with the first of its three picks from Brooklyn. The rights to the Nets' picks from 2024-27 could become incredibly valuable if Durant is traded, which amps the pressure on Nets GM Sean Marks to maximize the return. Picks could all come out in the wash if Brooklyn fetches enough, and the Nets might soon be the same frisky team they were before Kyrie Irving, Durant and Harden arrived.

And maybe that's all a front office needs to gamble its future away the belief that it can flip player assets for draft assets and draft assets for player assets in perpetuity, so long as team ownership approves. That keeps the job alive, until you make enough mistakes that the assets are too far diminished to recoup any value.

Kevin Durant's trade value is not what the Brooklyn Nets expected. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

Take the Chris Webber saga, for example. Try to follow the three first-round picks that both the Warriors and Washington Bullets traded for Webber in successive seasons, and they all eventually lead to the same end.

The Orlando Magic traded Webber's rights as the No. 1 overall pick and first-rounders in 1996, 1998 and 2000 to Golden State in 1993 for Penny Hardaway, who made the 1995 Finals alongside Shaquille O'Neal.

The first two of those picks landed at No. 11 in 1996 (Todd Fuller, two spots ahead of Kobe Bryant) and No. 5 in 1998 (Vince Carter), only the Magic didn't select either, because they had dealt both to the Washington Bullets in a salary dump of Scott Skiles. The return for both picks and Skiles was a first-round pick in 1998, which Orlando used to draft Keon Clark at No. 13. They traded Clark midway through his rookie season for a first-round pick in 2000, which they traded on draft night for a first-round pick in 2006. Orlando traded that pick to Denver in 2002 to avoid the luxury tax, taking a meaningless second-rounder back in return.

(The Nuggets later packaged that 2006 pick in the sign-and-trade for Martin.)

Orlando turned two picks it could have used to draft Hall of Fame players into absolutely nothing, all to save a few million dollars over a 13-year span. The third pick in the Webber deal? Strap in, my friends.

That landed at No. 5 in 2000, and the Magic drafted Mike Miller. He won Rookie of the Year honors, before they dealt him and a future first-round pick for Drew Gooden inside of two years. They were the worst team in the league again by 2004. On the same night they took Dwight Howard atop the draft, they dealt Gooden and the 30th overall pick for the right to overpay Tony Battie as a second center. That experiment mercifully ended in 2009, when on draft night Orlando packaged Battie in a trade for ... a 33-year-old Vince Carter.

The Magic somehow turned all three of the picks they received in exchange for Webber into Carter, 13 years after they could have drafted him with one of those same picks, losing value at practically every turn. What if the Magic kept Webber? What if Hardaway's left knee never gave out? What if they drafted Carter and/or Bryant? What if O'Neal never left in free agency? Would Orlando have won the title if one or two of those things occurred? Every time they flipped the coin, it came up a loser for five general managers.

This year, the Magic kept the No. 1 pick, rejecting overtures for Paolo Banchero. They're due for a winner.

Top-flight draft picks, or even picks with the chance to become top flight, are seemingly more valuable than ever, which makes the recent trend of trading excessive draft capital for complementary stars all the more curious. It just depends on where you are in the small-market cycle of trying to win or trying to lose, I guess.

The Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder traded every player of value for a slew of picks, tanking their own draft position, too, and early returns forecast bright futures for their growing collections of lottery selections.

Hit on Jalen Green and Jabari Smith, the Nos. 2 and 3 picks the last two years, and the Rockets will have Brooklyn's trove of picks to build around either through the draft or via trade. Same goes for the Thunder, who dealt Paul George to the L.A. Clippers in 2019 for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, five first-round picks and two swaps. They also landed Josh Giddey and Chet Holmgren in two tanking seasons since.

It's still a crapshoot, considering the flattened lottery odds and the possibility of busts and injuries, but it's really the only option the league's non-glamour markets have left. And the more coins you have to flip, the more likely one of them is going to turn up heads. That appears to be Ainge's plan in Utah, where he has reportedly offered Donovan Mitchell to the New York Knicks for six first-round picks and more prospects.

It's been nearly 40 years, but hope springs eternal the Jazz land a John Stockton and a Karl Malone in consecutive drafts. Gobert and Mitchell are the closest they've come since, and the cycle is starting again.

Once you've drafted your foundation, you better start building quickly. The player empowerment era is closing windows faster than ever. The Jazz took their swing with Gobert and Mitchell when in 2019 they traded their first-round picks from 2018-20 and multiple players for Mike Conley. It didn't work out, and they are now conceding that Mitchell will eventually leave in free agency, unless he asks out earlier.

Sometimes it's your turn to spin the wheel. The Atlanta Hawks have a five-year window before Trae Young can become a free agent and a shorter one before his trade value diminishes in the final two years of his deal so they bet big on Dejounte Murray, trading all of their draft capital at the tail end of Young's contract to the San Antonio Spurs. It is not dissimilar to the bet Minnesota just made on Anthony Edwards, whose rookie contract extension will expire around the time the Wolves fulfill their obligation to the Jazz.

Their plan is clear: Draft a star, leverage every asset through the first nine years of his career and maximize his title chances before unrestricted free agency. If it works, great. If not, strip the roster down to the studs and start all over again from draft scratch. Minnesota and Utah are on opposite ends of that spectrum. They don't have the luxury of using free agency as a weapon to begin anew, like the glamour markets do.

The time is now for the Utah Jazz to maximize Donovan Mitchell's trade value. (Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

Identify the teams in that space between tanking and starting the cycle again, and you may find your mark.

The New Orleans Pelicans are ripe for the picking. Zion Williamson is on the clock for six years fewer, if, like Davis, he seeks a bigger market earlier. They have Brandon Ingram, all their own first-round picks and six more left from dealing Davis and Jrue Holiday. Their turn to spin the wheel is coming sooner than later.

Same goes for the Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies. Luka Doncic's five-year extension begins this season, and Ja Morant's starts next year. No matter how much loyalty they have shown to the franchises that drafted them, they will be leveraging their future free agencies to maximize the talent around them in short order. The Mavericks already made a bad bet on Kristaps Porzingis. They cannot afford another one.

Durant, an all-time great, may not be worth the gamble. He will soon be 34 years old, three years removed from a ruptured Achilles, having lost significant time to injury the last two seasons. His waning prime might close a team's window with a young superstar even earlier, if Durant's playoff performance opposite Jayson Tatum is an indication. That's a bet few teams, if any, will be willing to make. It is also one the Wolves may have just made for Gobert, who will be as old as DeAndre Jordan is now when Edwards turns 24 years old.

Pair Durant with Morant, and Memphis could win. Big. Or they could lose. Big. It's a high-stakes coin toss.

The Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat always made the most sense for Durant, not just because they give him the best chance to win, but also because 37-year-old Chris Paul and 32-year-old Jimmy Butler have limited shelf lives. Same goes for the Lakers, who might have to attach their last two first-round picks this decade to flip Russell Westbrook for Kyrie Irving, hastily hoping LeBron James' swan song could have a ring to it.

When an executive wants your cache of future picks, what he is really saying is, We think you're going to be terrible before the last of these picks pays off, and the best bet against that is to pair complementary young stars who can build a sustainable winner together. The Hawks spent their pick-laden package to pair 25-year-old Murray with 23-year-old Young. We can debate whether Murray was right for Atlanta's one big swing, but with youth on its side, the front office at least mitigated its risk, and that makes a gamble easier.

On the flip side of that coin, the Spurs corrected the mistake they made with Leonard, not letting Murray get close enough to free agency to depreciate as an asset. They traded Murray after his surprise All-Star debut, with two years left on his rookie extension, at the height of his value. In the process, they transferred the risk of Murray walking at the end of his deal to the Hawks, whose picks will increase in value if he does.

And maybe that's the real trend here: Small markets preempting a non-contending star's empowerment play by dealing him before the mess of a trade request and impending free agency limits the return. Turn the disadvantage of small markets, where fans are generally more understanding of the degree of difficulty it takes to win every bet necessary on the road to a championship (i.e., drafting Giannis Antetokounmpo 15th overall, acquiring Khris Middleton as a throw-in and going all in on Holiday), into a position of power.

The Jazz were almost there. They drafted Mitchell and Gobert 13th and 27th, respectively, and went all in for Conley. They were a No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, but now it's time to cut their loses at three first-round exits in four years. So, they're here now, in search of another desperate franchise, preferably one with a track record of dysfunction. It's no coincidence Ainge has New York on the other end of the line.

Remember, the Knicks can just say, "No," and that might be enough to reset this madcap pick craze.

Ben Rohrbach is a staff writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach

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Desperate times: Behind the madcap craze of massive NBA draft picks packages - Yahoo Sports

HENDERSON, Nev. It wasnt the sharpest or most poignant metaphor to offer Josh McDaniels about the lessons he has learned over the years, but it struck a chord with him anyway.

The Las Vegas Raiders head coach had taken refuge in some shade Thursday, ducking out of the 106-degree heat following his teams first full-squad training camp practice. As he began to explain the importance of learning how to subtract from his coaching plate over the course of his career, a visitor floated a clunky, half-remembered proverb.

I remember someone once saying that perfecting your painting is learning to understand what shouldnt be in it, the visitor said.

McDaniels eyes lit up.

Thats exactly thats such a great way to say it, McDaniels said.

With his second head coaching stint underway (or third, if you count the McDaniels-scuttled Indianapolis Colts job), he has zero illusions about what needed to be removed from his canvass. Or more specifically, since his late-season firing from the Denver Broncos in 2010 after coaching the team less than two seasons. He was 34 years old when that happened. Hes 46 now. And in his mind, a lot has changed since.

What does he know now that he didnt know then? That he doesnt want to be a general manager; doesnt expect everyone on his staff to recreate the New England Patriots experience; wants to focus on his own design rather than tracing the one created by Bill Belichick; and would rather be good at a few jobs in his building than micromanaging himself into an abyss.

[Set, hut, hike! Create or join a fantasy football league now!]

Hes not spending this second chance trying to fit into the identity of a head coach he was never comfortable replicating in the first place.

Its 12 years since I left [head coaching] the first time, and sometimes you hear people say that they took some time and they tried to figure things out, McDaniels said. To each person, that means different things. For me, what I was trying to get done was, let me really stop and self-reflect on, what did I do that was clearly wrong? Its humbling. You have to really drop your ego and say to yourself, Man, I stunk at that. That was a really bad decision. Or, I didnt treat that person the way that I wanted to treat them all the time.

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At one point, McDaniels summed up the Denver experience about as succinctly as possible: It was crazy and I was young and everything else.

Since leaving New England this offseason to take the Raiders job, he has been expansive and humble about that part of his career. He doesnt treat it as a sore subject or some type of failure that hed rather avoid in conversation. That means something, given that most coaches are left with some mental scars after being ousted from their first head coaching job.

Instead, he draws that memory closer, talks about what he learned going 11-17 over those two seasons. History mostly remembers the fallout and trade of quarterback Jay Cutler and multiple run-ins with star wideout Brandon Marshall. McDaniels frames it as an overall struggle with not knowing how to navigate people, and not understanding himself and what an attempt at recreating the Patriots culture would take out of him. His results screamed of failed imitation rather than organic innovation.

Josh McDaniels says he has learned a lot from his failures in Denver, his reneging on Indianapolis and his reboot with New England. The Raiders hope it leads them to the Super Bowl. (AP Photo/John Locher)

In a way, thats how he was forced to begin recreating himself. After a one-year stint as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with the St. Louis Rams in 2011, McDaniels began a decade-long process of reevaluation during his second stint as offensive coordinator of the Patriots. A period of reflection that helped him take a confident leap into a new job with the Raiders, an opportunity many predicted would never come after he backed out on an agreement to become the head coach of the Colts in 2018.

To go back to New England and be watching [Belichick] run such an incredibly first-class organization and hes got it working the way he wants it to work, I was able to see that for a second go-round, McDaniels said. But Bill OBrien left. [Matt Patricia] left. [Brian Flores] left. Joe [Judge] had left. So I got an opportunity to kind of watch [other New England coaches] from afar as youre processing some of the things you would do different.

Heres what he learned from that.

That its really important for me and for anybody that leaves there you can take a lot of the football philosophies and a lot of the strategic things that apply to winning and losing on a Sunday, but I think the interpersonal workings of every relationship in every organization are going to be different, McDaniels said. Thats what I learned the hard way. Now Im trying to make a concerted effort to do it all the right way as much as I can.

In retrospect, a large part of the failure in Denver was McDaniels butting heads with Cutler within his first couple months on the job and trading him shortly afterward. That initial misstep looks far more like the failure of two young and stubborn people who had a lot of maturing to do.

Even if McDaniels' steadfast critics are willing to accept that his hiring in Denver was too young and too soon, they wont let him off easily for what happened with the Colts. The fact remains that he hired three assistant coaches, changed the trajectory of their lives ... and then walked away. History will also remember that one of those coaches was defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus, who was one of the best coordinators in the NFL over the past four years before landing a head coaching job with the Bears this offseason.

Theres a few more layers to the Colts situation that haven't been adequately considered, too. Andrew Luck had missed the previous season with shoulder surgery and been remarkably beaten up in his short career. McDaniels also didnt have a track record with general manager Chris Ballard, and the two were getting to know each other during the courting process. Even when it looked like a slam-dunk of a job, McDaniels was uneasy about it. And when Patriots owner Robert Kraft sensed he might have an opening, he seized upon it to bring McDaniels back for four more seasons.

The fallout of that decision and the criticism that followed ultimately made the McDaniels-Raiders union possible. He knew that if he ever left the Patriots again, there would not only be no going back, but it would have to be accompanied by Dave Ziegler as general manager. Former teammates at John Carroll University and the best of friends, that is who McDaniels wanted to pair with. Because who needs to worry about being a GM when your longtime friend and trusted confidant is filling that role? And can shape a personnel department that knows precisely how to scout for the coaching staff it's working with?

Josh McDaniels learned a lot from Bill Belichick, but he knows trying to replicate his way of doing things elsewhere is a mistake. (Nick Cammett/Diamond Images/Getty Images)

This is what the Raiders have working for them now. Not only has the dynamic tension (often friction) between former head coach Jon Gruden and former general manager Mike Mayock disappeared into the blast-furnace wind of Las Vegas, it has been replaced by two leaders who are in lockstep in every single decision. And theyre being supported by a revamped supporting structure.

For perhaps the first time under Mark Davis' team ownership, departments are now fully streamlined and staffed at every level, from business to football to administration. The purse strings for more aggressive roster-building have been loosened. Even Davis is making himself more available to McDaniels and Ziegler than any previous regime, while also surrendering the full authority for the tandem to build out the football organization as they see fit.

Thats how you get a 2022 edition of the Raiders that reshuffled the entire coaching and personnel staffs but loaded up with pricey veteran additions like Davante Adams and Chandler Jones rather than rebuilding. Because McDaniels and Ziegler believed in it, winning the trust of Davis to sign off.

Even with all those changes, a lot of the success and failure will come down to the Raiders' culture. And the culture will come down to whether McDaniels can live up to his embrace of concentrating on people more, micromanaging less and trusting his functional design rather than trying to recreate a Stalinesque Patriots blueprint that has never been successfully replicated outside of New England.

Ive let that go, McDaniels said. Ive just realized over time, really at the end of the day, you have to give people a great opportunity to do their job. And sometimes that means youre going to have to accept different. And I think some of us that have left the Patriots have gotten frustrated at times with, man, everything isnt the way that I remember it being in New England. And you know what? It aint gonna be. Its never going to be. Ive come to that conclusion and honestly, Im at such peace with the way we do things, while understanding that isnt the way that everything was done there.

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The 'Patriot Way' wont follow Josh McDaniels to the Raiders. He's learned to make his own - Yahoo Sports

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco had $650,000 in jewelry stolen from his car while he was on a rehab assignment in June, according to ESPN.

The incident occurred while Franco was playing with the Triple-A Durham Bulls. The team was in Jacksonville when Kahlil Eugene Mathis, 24, reportedly broke into Franco's car and stole a $60 safe that contained the jewelry. Mathis was also wanted for three other vehicle break-ins, per ESPN.

Franco had a number of items in the safe, including two Cuban link chains. One was valued at $300,000. The other was valued at $200,000. The safe also contained a $70,000 gold pendant, a $44,000 Rolex watch, a $20,000 American League championship ring, a $20,000 Durham championship ring and a $5,000 pendant of Tom from "Tom and Jerry."

Officers arrested Mathis after he sold a few of the items at a pawn shop near the hotel where Franco parked his car. Mathis provided a thumb print to the pawn shop, which officers were able to identify. Officers also found the safe, and some of the jewelry, in a hotel room used by Mathis. Both Cuban link chains and the Rolex have yet to be recovered.

Mathis is in jail and due to appear in court Aug. 1. He faces a number of charges, including four felony burglary charges and 14 other felonies, per ESPN. Mathis was charged for allegedly being involved in nine separate incidents.

Franco, 21, signed a 12-year, $185 million extension with the Rays following the 2021 MLB season. He got off to a hot start in 2022, and was hitting .302/.326/.481 on May 13. Franco sustained a leg injury, however, and saw his numbers plummet. The team placed Franco on the Injured List in early June. The break-in occurred while Franco was on a rehab assignment from that injury.

Franco returned to the Rays in late June. He made it 13 games before sustaining a hamate bone injury that will keep him out of action for multiple weeks.

Wander Franco had jewelry stolen from his car while on a rehab assignment. (Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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Wander Franco had $650,000 in jewelry stolen from his car while on rehab assignment in Florida - Yahoo Sports

The All-Star break gave us all a chance to catch our breath, and if youre anything like me, it also gave us a chance to miss baseball and realize how much more exciting life is with 30 Major League teams battling it out each day. For fantasy managers who are committed to winning this year, its time to get back to work. Lets find some long-term gems and weekend rentals.

Naylor is someone who often finds his way into this article, as his platoon splits (.921 OPS vs. RHP) make him an obvious target when the Guardians are set for a string of games against right-handers. Such is the case today, as Cleveland will play eight contests against righties in the next seven days.

The middle infield options on the waiver wire arent great right now, making a steady asset such as Hoerner feel more appealing than usual. The shortstop has been one of the most consistent helpers in the batting average category this year, hitting over .280 each month, leading to an overall average of .307. He also has a bit of speed (nine steals) and could help many roto teams until someone more exciting comes along.

Laureano continues to present a valuable power-speed mix, having tallied nine in both homers and steals columns across 64 games played. In fact, if you add up his totals over the past two campaigns, he has 23 homers and 21 swipes in 152 contests. This is the perfect time to find roster space for Laureano, as there is a chance that he is part of a contending teams lineup after the trade deadline.

Now's the time to add Ramon Laureano in fantasy leagues. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

I wont use too much space on Santander, who has little breakout potential from this point forward. But the right-handed hitter could finish the year with 30 homers and 90 RBIs, which makes him an underrated producer to fill out fantasy rosters.

Akil has put the Bad in Baddoo (sorry, I couldnt resist) this season, posting a .323 OPS and not showing any real signs of improvement since being recalled from a stint in the Minors. But he is just 23 years old and still possesses the skill set that led to 13 homers and 18 steals in 124 games last season. Those who can afford to keep Baddoo on their bench for a week or two could have someone with an exciting power-speed mix for the stretch run.

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Fantasy managers have been quick to pick up recently recalled prospect Max Meyer but not his rotation mate, Garrett. Their enthusiasm for Meyer may be misplaced, as Garrett is the one who has posted solid ratios (3.70 ERA, 1.23 WHIP) and a 40:10 K:BB ratio across eight starts. Coming off an 11-strikeout outing, Garrett should be rostered in most leagues for his start today against the Pirates.

Odorizzi has been solid in 10 starts this year (3.56 ERA, 1.19 WHIP) including posting a 12:1 K:BB ratio across 12.1 innings in back-to-back starts against the lowly As lineup prior to the All-Star break. The right-hander will make a third consecutive start against Oakland on Monday before wrapping up a two-start week vs. the Mariners. This is the time to grab him in weekly transaction leagues.

Stripling continues his successful conversion from the Blue Jays bullpen to rotation (2.84 ERA as a starter), and he should stick in the starting quintet from this point forward. The right-hander is a risky option in Boston this weekend but could help those in abbreviated points-league weeks. He has an advantageous matchup against the Tigers next week.

Crawford has been successful across four starts with the Red Sox, posting a 3.60 ERA and a 22:6 K:BB ratio. And with Chris Sale dealing with a broken finger, the right-hander should stay in the starting quintet for the foreseeable future. Supported by Bostons talented lineup, the 26-year-old has the potential to pick up a few victories, starting with a matchup against the Blue Jays tomorrow.

For the second straight year, Finnegan has been anointed the Nats' closer for the final months of the campaign. The right-hander picked up 11 saves from July 29 to the end of 2021 and is poised to do the same thing this year now that Tanner Rainey has been sidelined until 2023. With a lifetime 3.53 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP, Finnegan is far from a dominant reliever, but he should be good enough to help those in desperate need of saves.

Martin continues to look like the Rangers' top option for saves, having allowed his last earned run way back on May 29. The left-hander has collected three saves since Joe Barlow was relieved of the closers role in early July, and there is a chance that he never allows another Texas hurler to enter the closer picture. For those who have the option, I would grab Martin over Finnegan.

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Fantasy Baseball: Waiver wire pickups to start the second half off on a high note - Yahoo Sports

Enjoy retirement, turnover chain. You were a beacon of college football light.

Miami coach Mario Cristobal confirmed Thursday at his ACC media days appearance that Miami would no longer be breaking out the iconic jewelry after forcing a turnover.

The turnover chain was introduced in 2017 and its various iterations have been a big part of the Miami program for the past five seasons. Former coach Manny Diaz was the teams defensive coordinator when the chain made its debut. But the turnover chain era is now over, just like Diazs tenure as Miami head coach. And Cristobal really didn't seem too inclined to talk a lot about the chain being put out to pasture on Thursday.

"I think probably the media has put more thought into this than I have," Cristobal said Thursday when he was asked why Miami had retired the turnover chain. "We just really focus on getting better as a program and have focused on technique, fundamentals, regimentation, academics, strength and conditioning, sports science, community service, and that's what the focus has been on."

"It is not a shot or form of disrespect to anybody or anyone. Certainly history is history, and whether it's positive, whether it's inconsequential, whatever it may be, it's still history and part of your program. We're just moving in a direction that right now doesn't involve it. That's really the best way to address it.

"Let's put it this way. We've been working so hard and paying attention to so many other things that, in my opinion, are much more critical to winning football games and having success that it really hasn't been a subject or a topic. We won't be using it. You guys OK with that? We good now? Everybody got the chain stuff? OK. All right. Thank you."

We will not see a turnover chain on the Miami sidelines in 2022. (Photo by David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

A Miami native, Cristobal came to the Hurricanes from Oregon after the team zeroed in on him as the replacement for Diaz. Cristobal played football at Miami and is very familiar with the outward displays of emotion that happen at Miami. He was part of the legendary Miami teams of the late 1980s and early 1990s that took the college football world by storm with their brash attitudes.

But Cristobal clearly doesn't think Miami should be celebrating defensive success with the chain. At least not right now. Hopefully, it makes a comeback in the future. The turnover chain was fun. And Miami being successful and having an attitude makes college football fun, too.

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Miami and coach Mario Cristobal are retiring the turnover chain - Yahoo Sports

Hybrid work models became increasingly popular as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, which forced millions of employees to work remotely for public health concerns.

As offices began reopening when cases declined and vaccines became available, many companies adopted a hybrid model, in which employees come into the office part-time.

I don't think we should eliminate offices altogether, Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist at the Wharton Business School and author of Think Again, told Yahoo Finance at Goldman Sachss 10,000 Small Businesses 2022 Summit (video above). But I think that the evidence is really clear that as long as people show up half the week, they can work from anywhere the other half, and they're more productive, more satisfied, more likely to stay there, no known cost to collaboration or relationships. I don't know why we're so eager to have everybody on site all the time.

A woman works on her laptop computer at a coffee shop in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina on April 24, 2019. (Photo by Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images)

A February 2022 Gallup study of more than 140,000 U.S. workers found that 42% of remote-capable employees had a hybrid schedule, while 39% worked from home entirely. Among those remote-capable employees, 60% prefer hybrid work.

I think it's something we need to rethink, Grant said. Hybrid is the future. I think hybrid is the precedent. There are a lot of companies that committed to returning to office, and then doubled back and said, Wait a minute, this is not working for us. Lets agree on a two0 or three-day plan.

Data indicates that providing employees with such flexibility pays off according to Owl Labs's State of Remote Work 2021 report. Eighty-three percent of workers indicated they were at the same productivity level, or higher, working from home than working in the office, while 55% stated they were working more hours by being remote

Several big companies have chosen to use a hybrid work plan for their employees, including big names like 3M (MMM), Coinbase (COIN), Lyft (LYFT), Spotify (SPOT), and Twitter (TWTR).

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Grant noted that companies need strong leadership that is receptive to any employees concerns, such as desires to shift toward remote or hybrid work or concerns about toxic behavior in the workplace.

A hybrid work model can provide significant benefits to employees, according to Owl Labs. (Chart: Owl Labs)

I think one of the few silver linings of the pandemic is that more people at a leadership and management level are starting to recognize that if you do not care about people's quality of life, you don't get quality work, he said.

Nearly 3 in 4 workers said working from home even after the pandemic is better for their mental health, the Owl Labs report notes.

What I've found is much more effective is to actually go the extra step and talk about the problems that you see, Grant said. So if I say here are maybe some cultural shortcomings that I think we might want to work on, what do you think of these? I'm not just claiming that I'm open to feedback. I'm actually proving that I can take it.

Adriana Belmonte is a reporter and editor covering politics and health care policy for Yahoo Finance. You can follow her on Twitter @adrianambells and reach her at adriana@yahoofinance.com.

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Organizational psychologist explains why hybrid is the future of the workplace - Yahoo Finance

A return to the Golden State Warriors for Kevin Durant seemed to be in the realm of possibility after the Brooklyn Nets star made his trade request, but those whispers just received a healthy douse of cold water.

Warriors general manager Bob Myers downplayed the possibility of a trade for Durant in a pre-ESPYs interview with NBA.com's Mark Medina on Wednesday:

I like our team and where its at, Myers told NBA.com. I want to give the guys a chance to do it again ... Its a good group. Were lucky. Itll be fun to see."

Those do not sounds like the words of a man planning to blow up his roster to acquire a superstar in exchange for a litany of young players and draft picks.

The Warriors' stars had previously been reported to be in contact with Durant and "open" to the possibility of a trade if the stars aligned, but also content to hold onto their young core and go for another title.

Despite winning an NBA title last season, the Warriors also seem to be one of the teams positioned to assemble a competitive offer for the former MVP.

You can start with Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole, two younger players who played major roles in the team's championship run and are due new contracts after next season. Wiggins is set to be an unrestricted free agent, while Poole will be a restricted free agent.

Behind that pair, the Warriors also have three former top 10 picks over the last two years in James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody. All three have shown NBA starter potential, though Wiseman missed all of last season due to a meniscus tear.

The Warriors still own all of the future first-round draft picks except for 2024, which the Grizzlies have thanks to the trade that sent Andre Iguodala to Memphis back in 2019.

A return to the Warriors doesn't seem to be in the cards for Kevin Durant. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)

Those are a lot of potential pieces with a healthy range of immediate and future value, but the Warriors also might not be jumping at the chance to again mortgage their future to build a superteam for a few years, especially when Stephen Curry is 34 years old, Durant is 33 and Draymond Green and Klay Thompson are both 32.

Bringing in Durant would also push the team even deeper into the luxury tax, something team owner Joe Lacob is already complaining about.

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Warriors GM downplays possibility of Kevin Durant trade: 'I like our team and where its at' - Yahoo Sports