Dodger Darnell

Dodgers — Cowboys — Lakers — USC FB

[Pardon My Take @PardonMyTake]

Big boy grilling on the roof 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

[Blake Harris @BlakeHHarris]

Tanner HOT

[Trevor Lane @TrevorLane]

My thoughts on LA’s moves-

-I like all the players they targeted individually in a vacuum

-I question the fit, especially defensively. They also don’t have a starting level wing, though the roster isn’t finished

-I don’t love the value of any of the deals. Kessler’s contract is about right but would have liked to have sent back Vando to open more flexibility if giving up that much draft capital. Feels like LA paid a ceiling-level price on all 3 of Mamu, Grimes, and Sexton and then added player options on top.

-Did get younger, backcourt offense and center rotation are real strengths. Love Ayton slotted as a reserve, great quality there. Need Kessler to be a top-tier rim protector/rebounder.

-Athleticism is lacking, including lateral quickness on defense.

-For those hoping to see the young guys play more, Redick has basically no choice but to feed minutes immediately to Thiero and perhaps Carr as well both in terms of positional need and due to the above point about athleticism. Great if both pop, at least one doing so is a downright necessity.

-Two roster spots open, keeping an eye on a waive and stretch with Vando to open $ flexibility and one extra spot. Any 3/4 on the market could be sold on stepping into a potential starting role in LA from day 1, though $ and players to spend on are limited.

[NBA @NBAWAY0FFS]

BREAKING: The Los Angeles Lakers are in serious discussions with free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga, sources tell me.

Kuminga provides the Lakers with more youth, athleticism, and wing defense.

[JAKE OLIVER ELLENBOGEN @JKBOGEN]

So with this I can totally understand why #Lakers fans were ready to move on. I’ll always love LeBron and say he was under-appreciated in LA but this is a pretty bad look when he was putting pressure on the team to get better this year and taking up $50M on the cap.

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

#MAMU

[Jovan Buha @jovanbuha]

My extended thoughts on the Lakers’ moves today (for those who didn’t catch my stream):

— I think the primary goal should’ve been to land a long-term piece next to Luka and Austin. There was no scenario in which the Lakers built a team as good as OKC's or SAS's in one offseason (especially after losing LeBron). They landed that foundational player in Walker Kessler, my top offseason target (at any position) and clear top C. Perfect fit. Franchise cornerstone who can be top 5 in FG%, rebounds, and blocks next season. Monster on both ends. Love the signing. Think the AAV is fair and in line with market value, especially re: poaching him in restricted free agency. From that perspective, the offseason is an unequivocal success. I give the Kessler trade an A (would’ve liked to have kept one pick and/or one swap out of it -- trade price was high). Add in Deandre Ayton and Mamu, and I think the Lakers have one of the strongest center cores in the league.

-- I also think the FO deserves credit for emptying the clip and going all-in for Kessler. The price was high, but I've criticized them for years for refusing to trade picks and meet some of the asking prices for young starters. It's only right to commend them when they actually do it. They went three transactional cycles with Luka without adding a high-level young starter. They finally did that.

— As for the other three moves, I like all three players individually, particularly on the offensive end. I see the vision there. Collectively, they check a ton of boxes: youth, speed, shooting, dynamism, ball-handling/playmaking, rebounding (Mamu). This can be a top-five, if not even top-three, offense.

-- At the same time, I view all three players as largely bench-level guys on a true contender. I view Grimes as a fringe starter/6MOY type, and Mamu and Sexton as high-level bench players. As of right now, two of those three project to start. It's similar to last season, when multiple guys were slotted into higher roles than they should've been (Smart, Rui, and Ayton).

-- I think LA overpaid each player by roughly $1M-$2M in AAV, based on the market and similar signings. Not the worst thing in the world, but I also don’t understand why those contracts also came with player options. Should’ve only been POs with lower AAV deals (or fewer years). Or the agreed-to AAV with no POs. Feels like they paid max market value on each player + gave the PO on top. Perhaps that had to do with waiting on Kessler S&T, but I think they needed to negotiate the AAV or PO down.

— I’m probably lower than consensus on Grimes. But I’ve come more around to the signing. I just think that, for now, they’re asking him to be: 1) the No. 3 option on a title contender, and 2) the defensive stopper on a title contender. I’m not sure either one of those is an appropriate ask of him. I think a proper slotting would be him as the fourth-best offensive player and the No. 2, or even 3, defender in a starting group. Offensively, he's an amazing fit, and the Lakers haven't had a role player with that skill set in years. Defensively, he'll need to channel his best stretches of defense far more consistently. Even then, I don't think he can be the best POA or wing defender on a title team (which he currently is among LA's top 7 players).

— Love Mamu’s game and skill set. Just don’t think he’s a starter on a contender -- especially defensively. The Lakers are now set up to have him or Luka defend wings that play at the 4. Not ideal. If the Lakers add a 4 and move him into a third big role, I love the fit and see the vision. He can shoot, pass, drive, and rebound. He’s going to unlock a ton for them offensively in two-big looks or as the single big. I think it’s close between him and Rui, but I understand why they picked him. He has a more well-rounded game. He's the one that I have the most issue with contract-wise. That deal should have been 3 years at $39M, or 4 years at $40M, with no PO (same AAV on the shorter deal or a lower AAV on the 4-year deal).

— Sexton is the signing I have the most reservations about. I think the Lakers would’ve been better served spending less $ — or even the same $ — retaining Marcus Smart or signing Kelly Oubre Jr. Both are much better defenders than Sexton, and could switch between POA and wing stopper roles at a higher level. Sexton is the better offensive player — better scorer/passer/shooter — but the Lakers’ obvious weakness with a Luka/AR/Kessler core is perimeter defense. I get the appeal of a scoring bench guard; I just think that archetype is easier to find than a (playable) wing/POA stopper. You can find the former on min deals every summer. You can't get the latter — most of the min. defenders aren't playoff-level guys. You can’t solve every hole in one transaction cycle, but the Lakers once again prioritized a small, offensive-minded guard over adding wing/perimeter defense. Sexton’s reputation as a defender is far beyond his actual defense. Even in the best-case scenario, he’s a 6-2 guard with switching limitations. The Lakers need good defenders in the 6-6 to 6-9 range. I would feel much better about this roster with Smart or Oubre in Sexton's place.

— The Lakers didn’t address the wing defense for the sixth consecutive offseason (post 2020-21 season). It’s been a real blind spot for them post-KCP/Caruso. Grimes and Sexton are not good enough to be the primary POAs/wing stoppers on a title team. If you consider the Lakers a top 10 team (which I still do), I think they have the worst collection of 1-4 defensive talent among those teams by a decent margin (NYK, SAS, OKC, TOR, PHI, DEN, MIN, HOU & DET). That’s before mentioning CLE, ORL, PHX, POR, etc. DEN is maybe the exception -- depending on their offseason -- but I’d still take Gordon or Watson over any Laker perimeter defender by a good margin.

-- I believe Kessler can be in the non-Wemby/Gobert conversation for best rim-protector in the league. He'll put out some of these fires, and is a massive upgrade over Ayton/Hayes. LA was the second-worst rim-protecting team in the NBA last season. That won't be the case this season. At the same time, he's not Wemby. He's not an elite defensive system in and of himself. He needs support. And the Lakers have built a rotation that is basically, "Let Kessler save us."

-- There are three wild cards in all of this: Adou Thiero, Cameron Carr, and Jake LaRavia. Adou and Carr have the athleticism and defensive upside LA desperately needs. Perhaps one of them pops and quells some of these concerns. I think that's a big ask for a second- and/or first-year player, respectively, but that's the challenge ahead. LaRavia's shot and offensive confidence declined over the second half of last season, and if he can return to shooting like SAC/MEM (high 30s), he can be a bench stopgap.

-- For those mentioning Vando, JJ has never used Vando as anything more than a 9th man when the team has been healthy over the past two seasons. They have clearly not clicked. JJ values shooting above almost all else. Perhaps LA is injured enough for Vando to factor in more, but I believe Jake will be ahead of him (again), and Adou and Carr may even be given opportunities ahead of him as well. This is all before factoring in the possibility that LA might trade him at some point.

-- Overall, I commend LA for going all-in for Kessler. They added their center of the future and a third foundational piece. I think they also added three high-level bench players, albeit on contracts that are far more player-friendly than team-friendly. I think they've probably taken a step back from last season. It's been a successful offseason, but I think they need to start prioritizing perimeter defense more seriously and look beyond players whose primary strength is having a bag.

-- As for comparing this group to last season, I don't think the new starting group or bench is as cohesive as last season's group. I think LA has 7 guys who could play in a series vs. NYK/OKC/SAS. Last season, I believe they also had 7, but they had more top-end talent with LeBron. Maybe Kessler is transformative enough defensively to offset that. I could be wrong. I think this group has a higher floor than last season's but a lower ceiling.

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

@PFTCommenter

[Legion Hoops @LegionHoops]

REPORT: The Wizards have emerged as a wild card in the LeBron James sweepstakes, per @ScoopB

[Kurrco @Kurrco]

QUAVO
PHARRELL WILLIAMS

HAAVIN

PREMIERED @ LOUIS VUITTON MEN'S SS27 🚨

[Pittsburgh Pirates Player Development Report @PGHplayerDev]

Jack Anker RHP
@The_Marauders

6 IP
6 H
0 BB
10 K
2 ER

#LetsGoBucs | #ItAllBeginsInBradenton 🌴

[Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 @big_business_]

👤LOE SHIMMY👤

💿LITTLE BIRDIE REMIX💿

🚨OUT NOW�

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

@arielhelwani care to comment???

[Ariel Helwani @arielhelwani]

Dodgers fans are so mad at me. Oh no what will I do.

Yamamoto can talk all the shit he wants, just like Vlad could have and did. Stars who delivered are allowed.

I had an issue with the bit players who got an A on the project - aka did nothing and played like shite - talking smack.

And for the national voice of baseball - who yes I know is the dodgers PBP guy - to be the MC of the parade is an awful look. Mike Breen would never.

[Anuj @anujcodes_21]

🚨 Anthropic just showed a 24-minute workshop on how to actually do prompts for Claude.

Taught by the people who built it.

Free. No registration. No paywall.

I've seen $300 courses that don't cover what they teach in the first 8 minutes.

Watch it and bookmark it now.

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

@Zaccornelius_ please delete this somehow

[Basketball Forever @bballforever_]

Has Carmelo Anthony’s legacy officially been erased? 😢

🔸Nikola Jokić took his Denver number
🔸LaMelo Ball took his nickname
🔸Kevin Durant took his Olympics record
🔸James Harden took his NBA top 10 scoring spot
🔸Jalen Brunson has taken New York

[Nav Toor @heynavtoor]

SOMEONE BUILT WORDLE BUT FOR MINI GOLF AND IT IS QUIETLY BECOMING MY FAVORITE MORNING RITUAL

it's called https://t.co/uNM5Of4MOd.

you open the tab and there is one mini golf hole. that's the whole game. one new hole every midnight pacific. same hole for everyone in the world. your first finish counts.

you click the ball, drag back like a slingshot, let go. the further you pull, the harder you hit.

today's hole is called "Up and around." it's an S-shaped tropical island floating in dark teal water, with cross-barriers and one little wooden ramp that i ricocheted off three times in a row. par 6.

at the top of the screen, a live ticker scrolls past in real time:

> someone holed 6/6 · par

> someone holed 5/6 · birdie

> someone holed 11/6 · +5

real strangers are putting on the same hole as you. you can see the ghost rings of where their balls travelled, in cyan and purple and pink.

when you finish, you get a wordle-style share card. emoji result. takes one tap to drop into a group chat.

PC Gamer just wrote a whole love letter to it. the writer admits they scored a 20 on a par 12. they were thrilled.

the developer goes by https://t.co/0LJJsQnIeY. the 3D models are from Kenney, a guy who has been releasing free CC0 game assets for over a decade.

no signup. no account. no tracking. your streak lives in your browser. if you clear your cookies, the streak dies with them.

the about page says it in one sentence: "Same hole for everyone, new one at midnight Pacific, and your first finish is your score. That's the whole game."

we are 35 days into the project and the calendar archive lets you play every single previous hole.

i don't know why this is so satisfying. i just know i was supposed to be writing this post and i kept reopening the tab.

the internet is healing.

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

@Nolimitsu_ Sike

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

@SpinninBackfist Ilya is going to have his walkout (“Cancion de Mariachi”) played live — per my sources

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

@PardonMyMeme Plz 4give @Zaccornelius_

[Kurrco @Kurrco]

LUCKI

PLOT TWIST FLIP
(FREESTYLE)

OUT NOW 🚨

[Dodger Darnell @DodgerDarnell]

Don’t show @Philly_Mays this @BarstoolBigCat

[Shams Charania @ShamsCharania]

76ers are waiving Julian Champagnie to sign McClung, sources said.