Chicago Sports

The endless job of recruiting by college basketball coaches has been magnified more than ever before thanks to the NCAA Transfer Portal.

The college basketball transfer has evolved into the top recruiting priority for college programs, shifting the recruitment of high school players to the back seat. College coaches can’t afford to go too young these days when so many older, accomplished and ready-made players are available to them — in the hundreds — in putting together a roster each season.

The transfer is even more prevalent and important considering there are so many more players who are now available. The NCAA granting every player an extra year of eligibility because of the pandemic has enhanced the transfer trend.

If you look hard enough you can even find players approaching their mid-20s. The stark difference between going to battle with a 22, 23 or even a 24-year old rather than a teenager out of high school is enormous — and in some cases essential.

A fresh, new coach just hired and taking over a downtrodden program with a depleted roster? Hit the portal.

A coach who is in year four or five and on the hot seat due to losing more than winning? Hit the portal.

A coach who feels he’s just a player away from competing for a conference title and getting into the NCAA Tournament? Hit the portal.

The portal can be a big hit for some, but it can also be fool’s gold for others.

Among the many options for college coaches at all levels are former high school prospects out of Illinois who, for one reason or another, are on the move. There are some good ones out there. And there are some not so good ones.

Here is a ranking of the top transfer portal options out of the state of Illinois with, we are sure, more to come as the weeks, days — and even minutes — go by this spring.

1. Terrence Shannon Jr., Lincoln Park (Texas Tech)

The physical attributes are ones every high-major program salivates over. He’s a lengthy 6-6 gazelle who can run with guards in the open floor and elevates off the floor as well as anyone. He is a physical and athletic marvel.

Shannon, who was ignored out of high school despite finishing as the City/Suburban Hoops Report’s No. 5 ranked prospect in the Class of 2018, spent a year at IMG Academy in Florida before signing with Texas Tech.

Shannon has a vast amount of high-level experience, which is awfully attractive for college coaches. That includes being at the very minimum a part-time starter for three NCAA Tournament teams, including 21 starts for the 2020 Final Four team as a freshman.

Despite some modest numbers this past season, which included 10.4 points and just 2.6 rebounds and two assists, Shannon helped the Red Raiders to 27 wins and a Sweet Sixteen berth.

Shannon is one of the top players in the country in the transfer portal and could flourish as a senior in the right situation.

2. Antonio Reeves, Simeon (Illinois State)

The most coveted player in basketball right now is the shot-making player who can space the floor with consistent three-point shooting ability. They are at an absolute premium, and it’s exactly what Reeves provides.

Reeves was lightly recruited and overlooked as a senior at Simeon. He was uncommitted throughout a breakout senior campaign for coach Robert Smith and the Wolverines. While Wisconsin was a high-major that flirted with Reeves as a senior, it was Illinois State that jumped in hard, albeit late, and nabbed the blooming 6-5 guard.

After putting up some whopping numbers this past season as a junior, dozens of high-major programs across the country, including several high-profile ones, have been calling and clamoring for his services for next year.

The silky smooth Reeves averaged 20.1 points this past season– second in the Missouri Valley Conference — and has already scored nearly 1,200 career points in three years.

But what really makes Reeves one of the most desired players in the portal is his shooting ability. He made 76 three-pointers as a junior while shooting a very respectable 39 percent from beyond the arc.

3. Xavier Pinson, Simeon (LSU)

The slithery but slender 6-2 point guard surprised many with his production at the high-major level while at Missouri.

In his junior season at Mizzou, his last season there prior to transferring to LSU, Pinson averaged 13.6 points and 2.9 assists a game. That came after putting up 11.1 points as a sophomore.

This past season for the fired Will Wade, Pinson was a starter in the SEC and averaged 9.8 points while upping his assist and steals numbers to 4.8 and 1.9 a game, respectively.

There is certainly some high-major production for Pinson, though improving his three-point shooting numbers would go a long way in being a more impactful player at that level next season. He’s a career 30 percent three-point shooter who shot just 24 percent from beyond the arc this past season for the Tigers.

Pinson will take advantage of being a “super senior” next season, thanks to the extra year of eligibility that’s been granted to every college player.

4. Jeremiah Williams, Simeon (Temple)

Just as he did throughout his high school career at St. Laurence and Simeon, Williams is a stat-sheet stuffer. The 6-5 guard is as versatile as they come, capable of playing and defending multiple positions.

After two years at Temple, where he started 37 games, Williams is a seasoned player who will be sought after by both mid-major and high-major programs. With his size, length and mindset, Williams is an elite defensive player.

Offensively, while Williams struggled shooting the basketball from the perimeter, he managed to average 9.3 points as a freshman and 9.5 points as a sophomore. His two-year career numbers of 9.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists a game show his overall productivity.

5. Dante Maddox Jr., Bloom (Cal State-Fullerton)

The City/Suburban Hoops Report called Maddox one of the biggest recruiting steals out of Illinois in the Class of 2020. He had name recognition early in his career while playing at Bloom, but the big-bodied guard broke out as a senior after signing with Cal-State Fullerton.

The strong, athletic 6-2 guard put together a heck of a freshman season two years ago. Maddox averaged 11.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists a game while shooting 43 percent from three and 90 percent from the line.

Maddox battled some nagging injury issues and a bit of a change in offensive philosophy and his numbers regressed this past season as a sophomore. He averaged 6.8 points a game while his shooting numbers tumbled to 25 percent from three. But he took more three-point attempts as a freshman, when his numbers were eye-opening for a freshman, in seven fewer games played.

Maddox is being hunted by mid-major programs across the Midwest in hopes of getting him back home on the rebound from the West Coast. He’s physical, competes and brings all the right intangibles as a willing defender with offensive punch, character and solid academics.

6. Tamell Pearson, Morgan Park (Western Illinois)

The 6-10, 225-pound Pearson, who was a part of two state championships at Morgan Park, brings legitimate size college programs desperately need. He also brings a ton of experience as an added attraction.

Pearson began his career at UAB and was a part-time starter as a sophomore. He made the move to Western Illinois and produced these past two seasons as a starting big man.

As a junior Pearson averaged 10.4 points and 6.9 rebounds. This past season he was again a double-figure scorer averaging 10.1 points, added 5.9 rebounds and really improved his shooting percentage from 45 percent as a junior to 58 percent as a senior.

7. Jayson Kent, Oak Forest (Bradley) — Committed to Indiana State

The classic late-blooming player in high school. Kent’s game, production and physical dimensions all came together late in his career at Oak Forest. He went from a no-namer to an all-state caliber player in a matter of a year, growing into a multi-dimensional 6-7 wing with a promising jump shot with range.

Bradley signed the high-upside Kent. He wasn’t quite physically ready for the grind of the Missouri Valley Conference as a freshman, playing just 10 minutes a game as a freshman.

But Kent found his way on the floor this past season as a sophomore, starting 15 games and playing over 20 minutes a game. Kent averaged 6.9 points and 2.9 rebounds. The jumper, which shows the potential to be a weapon, must become more consistent going forward as he shot just 26 percent from beyond the arc (24 of 91 from three).

8. Tyler Cochran, Bolingbrook (Ball State)

The big-bodied 6-2 versatile guard has been a pretty productive college player in his three seasons — first at Northern Illinois and then at Ball State. But in both places his head coach was fired before he had exhausted his eligibility.

After averaging 15.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and two assists as a do-it-all sophomore guard at NIU, Cochran transferred to Ball State. This past season he averaged 11.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists while also markedly improving his three-point shooting.

Cochran is now a mid-major veteran who still has two more years of eligibility.

9. Dusan Mahorcic, Notre Dame (Utah)

Finding the right fit — and level — for the 6-10, 230-pound Mahorcic is the goal. He’s now played at four different schools and four distinctly different levels.

A late bloomer who came on as a senior at Notre Dame, he started his career at Division II Lewis in Romeoville. After a year there he spent a season at a junior college before signing with Illinois State.

With Dan Muller’s Redbirds, the mobile big man put up decent numbers in 22 games during the Covid season of 2020-21, averaging 9.9 points and 7.2 rebounds in 24 minutes of action.

He transferred to Utah and played in just 13 games. He played 14 minutes a game and put up a pedestrian 5.5 points and 4.1 rebounds.

Mahorcic’s size and experience, however, will be desirable once again on the open market.

10. Sherif Kenney, Orr (La Salle) — Committed to Bryant

He arrived in Chicago to play his final year of high school at Orr and ultimately signed with La Salle where he did put in some work over the past three years. He’s been a regular contributor as a big, strong 6-4, 225-pound guard.

After averaging 8.7 points, 2.2 and 1.8 assists in three seasons in the Atlantic 10 Conference, Kenney is headed to Bryant, a program that reached the NCAA Tournament this past season.

11. Myles Baker, Young (Eastern Illinois)

Baker began producing immediately as a college player, playing 21 minutes a game as a freshman at Central Connecticut State and averaging 8.6 points. He came back and averaged 10.4 points and two rebounds as a sophomore before he decided to transfer.

Now, after playing just one game in one season at Eastern Illinois, the 6-2 guard is back in the portal.

12. Chris Payton, Bloomington (Pitt)

A real wild card going forward after barely playing for Pitt in the ACC this past season. He saw meaningless minutes in only 13 games and scored a grand total of 10 points.

The still raw but physically and athletically gifted Payton will be the definition of a college program getting older. He was part of a Bloomington team that finished third in the state in 2017, so there is some age to Payton as he’s already been out of high school for five years.

The 6-7 Payton was a heavily recruited junior college prospect as recently as two years ago when he averaged a double-double at Indian Hills Community College.

13. Zion Griffin, Hinsdale South (UIC)

The 6-6 forward started his career at Iowa State where he played minimal minutes with little production. As a sophomore with the Cyclones he averaged three points and two rebounds a game.

He then came home, transferring to UIC where he’s played 26 minutes a game the past two seasons. This past season Griffin averaged 11.1 points and four rebounds for the Flames.

14. Nana Akenten, Bolingbrook (Southeast Missouri State)

This is the older, seasoned college veteran who has one year of eligibility remaining and offers age, experience and having been through a college basketball season’s grind.

Akenten, a 6-6 forward and former all-stater at Bolingbrook, played two years at Nebraska where he saw very little time. He sat out a year while redshirting at Southeast Missouri State before starting a total of 27 games the past two seasons.

After averaging 9.3 points and 5.8 rebounds in his first season of action at SEMO, Akenten averaged 7.1 points and 4.2 rebounds this past season.

15. Joey St. Pierre, Richmond-Burton (UW-Milwaukee)

The numbers won’t jump out at you, but the size will. And big men are a commodity. St. Pierre is a legit 6-10, 275-pound back-to-the-basket behemoth who was mildly productive in his first taste of Division I basketball this past season.

Following three seasons at Division II Wisconsin-Parkside — and sitting out a year after transferring to UW-Milwaukee — he started 29 games and played 24 minutes a game for the recently fired Pat Baldwin this past season.

He averaged 6.3 and 5.7 rebounds while converting 59 percent from the field. But his free-throw shooting (25 of 52) is cause for concern.

16. Maurice Commander, Curie (UIC)

The 5-11 point guard is on the move after spending two years at Tennessee-Chattanooga and the past two seasons at UIC.

After averaging double figures (10.5 ppg) for the Flames in just 15 games, including 12 starts, a year ago, he missed this past season with a season-ending hip surgery. Prior to his surgery, Commander played in a lot of Division I basketball games.

Before his transfer to UIC, Commander started all 32 games as a sophomore for Chattanooga, averaging 6.2 points and 2.2 assists.

17. Colton Sandage, Bloomington (Western Illinois)

A sleeper in high school who flew under the radar, Sandage went to Vincennes Junior College for two years where he helped them to a NJCAA national championship.

He didn’t waste much time in becoming a major factor at Western Illinois. He started all 31 games this past season as a senior after averaging 20 minutes a game as a junior.

The 6-2 guard showed he’s more than just a shooter. While he did connect on 35 percent of his threes and knocked down 65 of them this past season, Sandage averaged 13.4 points.

18. Zion Young, Simeon (Oakland)

There are some up-and-down numbers to sift through as he has now played two seasons at Western Illinois and two at Oakland.

He had a breakthrough season for the Leathernecks in the Summit League as a sophomore in 2019-20. The powerfully built guard averaged 13.2 points, chipping in 4.5 rebounds a game while starting 25 games.

He played mostly off the bench as a junior following a transfer to Oakland in the Horizon League, averaging 7.8 points, and was limited to just seven games this past season due to an injury.

19. Kejuan Clements, Simeon (Eastern Illinois)

After a couple of seasons playing junior college basketball, including his final year at Triton Junior College, Clements headed to Eastern Illinois. In one season there the tough, competitive guard averaged 8.3 points and 4.5 assists a game. But he made just 18 of 79 from the three-point line.

20. Kenny Strawbridge, Rockford Lutheran (Alabama State)

After redshirting for a year at UMKC and then playing a season at Western Nebraska in the junior college ranks, Strawbridge landed at Alabama State and just finished his second season there.

The 6-4 guard averaged 10.5 points a game in each of the past two seasons. While the points came in a high-volume way with poor shooting numbers, he also averaged 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists combined in those two seasons.

Other players in the transfer portal from Illinois:

Kani Acree, Carbondale (Ball State)

Trey Boston, Downers Grove North (Louisiana-Monroe)

Tyler Chisom, Proviso East (South Dakota) — Committed to Prairie View A&M

Brandon Hall, Thornton (East Tennessee State)

Bobby Harvey, Hillcrest (IUPUI)

Jamere Hill, Joliet West (Toledo)

Jaheim Holden, Evanston (Tarleton State)

Malcolm Townsel, Evanston (Holy Cross)

Trey Boston, Downers Grove North (Louisiana-Monroe)

Barlow Alleruzo, De La Salle (Eastern Illinois)

Read More

PALM BEACH, Fla. — Former Bears quarterback Andy Dalton is signing a one-year, $3 million with the Saints, a source said, which almost certainly slots him as Jameis Winston’s backup.

The Bears, who signed Dalton to a $10 million contract last year, might end being the last team to offer him a starting job as he winds down his career. The Saints are his third team in three seasons since the Bengals released him.

Bears general manager Ryan Pace and coach Matt Nagy thought signing Dalton, now 34, was the key to unlocking the struggling offense. Instead, he was a symbol of the team’s overall dysfunction and poor planning.

Shortly after signing Dalton, the Bears traded up to draft Justin Fields at No. 11 overall, then Nagy declared there would be no competition. Dalton, was his starter, and he planned to keep Fields on the bench for the entire season.

That plan fell apart quickly. Fields took over in Week 2, but was in an awkward position after having spent the entire offseason on second string and was then being asked to play in an offense that wasn’t designed to fit his strengths.

Dalton ended up playing eight games and finished with a 76.9 passer rating, which was worse than any of Mitch Trubisky’s four seasons and worse than Nick Foles’ disappointing 2020 performance. He had eight touchdown passes and nine interceptions.

Read More

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra on Tuesday announced its 2022-2023 season, a season filled with milestones and milestone performances.

Most prominent, the CSOs 132nd season will mark the conclusion of the tenure of Zell Music Director Riccardo Muti, marking the end of his 13-year artistic affiliation with the orchestra. Programming for the CSO season will feature the symphonies of Schubert and Tchaikovsky, and Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony, which Muti will conduct for the first time with the orchestra, and Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony, which he performs for the first time. Other highlights include the U.S. premiere of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s “Solemn Prayer”; and Mussorgsky’s “Pictures from an Exhibition,” which Muti conducted for his CSO podium debut at Ravinia in 1973.

The season concludes with Muti conducting the CSO, Chicago Symphony Chorus and soloists for Beethoven’s Missa solemnis (June 23-25, 2023).

Other season highlights include the annual CSO at the Movies series, featuring screenings of critically acclaimed films with the orchestra performing the score live. The lineup includes: “Amadeus” (Oct. 13-16), Constantine Kitsopoulos, conductor; “The Princess Bride” (Nov. 25-27), with a new score arranged by Dire Straits frontman/guitarist Mark Knopfler; “An Evening with John Williams,” with John Williams conducting (March 24, 2023); and “Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens” (June 29, 2023), with David Newman, conducting.

As part of the season’s Symphony Center Presents Jazz series, highlights include the Oct. 18 arrival of Chucho Valdes presenting his four-movement suite La Creacion (The Creation), for big band, Afro-Cuban percussion and vocals.

The Joffrey Ballet returns to Symphony Center for a program (Nov. 10-12) with the CSO conducted by Harry Bicket, and featuring two world premiere commissions: Cathy Marston’s ballet set to Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll, and Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s work set to Rameau’s Suite from Platee).

The Symphony Center Presents Orchestras series opens Nov. 16 with the Berliner Berliner Philharmoniker performing Mahler’s Symphony No. 7. conducted by Kirill Petrenko.

The CSO MusicNOW series returns with four concerts curated by Mead Composer-in-Residence Jessie Montgomery (Oct. 24 and Nov. 21, 2022; and Feb. 20 and April 24, 2023).

The season’s chamber music series will include the Emerson String Quartet, joined by pianist Emmanuel Ax, making its final Chicago concert appearance on June 4, 2023.

And the annual holiday programming will include the classical music vocal ensemble Chanticleer in concert at the Fourth Presbyterian Church (126 E. Chestnut, Dec. 6-7); and the Chicago Symphony Chorus, members of the CSO and conductor Alastair Willis for the family-friendly musical offering “Merry, Merry Chicago!” (Dec. 16-17 and 20-23).

For ticket information call (312) 294-3000 or email [email protected].

The complete season lineup is available at cso.org.

Read More

GLENDALE, Ariz. — The White Sox acquired outfielder Adam Haseley from the Phillies in a minor trade Tuesday, sending right-handed pitching prospect McKinley Moore to Philadelphia.

Haseley, 25, started in center field and batted eighth in the Phillies Opening Day lineup last season but appeared in only nine games before leaving the team for personal reasons on April 15. He appeared to have an outside shot at making the Phillies Opening Day roster this season.

A left-handed hitter and thrower, Haseley owns a .264/.322/.373 hitting line over three seasons, appearing in 160 games with 355 plate appearances and playing all three outfield positions. He was drafted eighth overall in the 2017 draft, three selections ahead of White Sox first-rounder Jake Burger.

Moore, a hard-thrower posted a 4.20 ERA between Advance A Winston-Salem and Low-A Kannapolis with high strikeout and walk rates, was ranked 28th per MLB Pipeline among White Sox prospects.

The Sox outfield received a blow Sunday when Adam Vaughn was sidelined with a hip pointer, and Haseley adds to their depth chart. Defensively, Haseley would probably fall behind Luis Robert and Adam Engel and ahead of the remaining Sox outfield core that includes Eloy Jimenez, converted first basemen Vaughn and Gavin Sheets and Leury Garcia.

Read More

For musical theater actress Courtney Reed, the road to Broadway started with a mouse and a precocious red-headed girl in productions at Children’s Theatre of Elgin.

“My first role was as a mouse in ‘Cinderella’,” Reed says with a laugh. “I remember being very nervous.”

But the moment Reed realized she was never happier than when she was on stage came at around the age of 10, when she performed the lead in the popular musical “Annie.”

“I loved every part of it; I loved the community of it,” Reed recalls. “I was heartbroken when the show was over. I felt I could be my true self when I was on stage and among people who were kind of weirdos like me.”

Reed, who grew up in Elgin, attended Larkin High School’s Visual and Performing Arts Academy and the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. She performed in a few Chicago shows (at Noble Fool and Pheasant Run) before quickly landing in “Mamma Mia!” on Broadway.

Now, after more Broadway success (“Aladdin,” “In the Heights”), Reed is back in town leading the first national tour of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” as Satine, the love-starved courtesan. The stage adaptation of Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 movie musical also stars Conor Ryan as Christian, the young composer who falls in love with Satine.

“I love that I get to flex my muscles with this role,” Reed, 37, says. “In the past, I’ve portrayed some amazing characters, but they didn’t necessarily get into the nitty gritty the way that I think Satine does. She is so broken and doesn’t have the ability to just fall in love like Christian does.”

The winner of 10 Tony Awards, “Moulin Rouge” is directed by Alex Timbers and features a book by John Logan and choreography by Sonya Tayeh. Described as “sensory overload,” it’s set in a world of splendor, romance and excess filled with Bohemians and aristocrats who inhabit Belle Epoque Paris at the turn of the 20th century.

The show’s music, like the movie, is drawn from more than 160 years of popular music including 70 songs from artists including Beyonce, Rihanna, Elton John, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, The Rolling Stones and many more. (The song list has been updated to include popular songs released since the movie’s debut.)

The one original song in the show, “Come What May,” sung with her co-star Ryan, is Reed’s favorite: “It’s such an incredible duet. Conor is such an amazing singer and I love all these moments with him.”

Timbers, a longtime fan of Reed, says she is the proverbial triple threat — “an incredible singer, dancer, actor” — but adds that she’s really “a quadruple threat.”

“She has this grit and tenacity but also wit, which is something we don’t think about these days,” he says. “She’s very clever, and she finds ways to turn the language and twist the lyrics in ways that really surprise you.”

After college, Reed planned on trying her luck in Los Angeles: “I thought there was no way I was going to get on Broadway; it’s so competitive.”

Instead, her 2001 move to New York proved to be fast and furious. Reed assumed she was auditioning for the touring company of “Mamma Mia!,” but it was actually as a replacement and understudy in the Broadway run. Until then, she’d never been to New York nor seen a Broadway show.

“I was 22-years-old and here I was packing my bags,” Reed recalls. “I was so young and so green. I didn’t know a lot of things, and I learned so much in those first few years.”

Reed went on to perform as a replacement in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “In the Heights” and landed her first leading role in the 2014 Broadway debut of Disney’s “Aladdin,” where she originated the role of Jasmine, her favorite Disney princess.

“Jasmine was the first real, true ethnic Disney princess and with her long dark hair and olive skin I really identified with her growing up,” says Reed, whose mother is Vietnamese. “Plus, she’s sassy, very independent and says what she believes in.”

Casting for the touring version of “Moulin Rouge,” began just before the pandemic hit when everything was put on hold. Reed moved back to Chicago to be near her family and now lives in Lakeview. She’s thrilled to be bringing the show to Chicago audiences and still a bit amazed that she’s playing Satine (Nicole Kidman starred in the film version).

“I was a huge fan of the movie, but when word got out that it was going to be a musical I never thought I would be cast,” she recalled. “I don’t look anything like Nicole Kidman. I just feel so lucky; it’s a dream come true to dig into the heart of this role.”

Read More

Right now, the Blackhawks have five picks in the first three rounds of the 2022 NHL Draft and another five in the first three rounds of the 2023 draft.

That’s a good thing, and those numbers might increase further as general manager Kyle Davidson continues the Hawks’ rebuild with future trades.

But the specifics of those picks — with conditions attached to four of them — are unusually complicated. With the 2022 draft in Montreal just more than three months away (July 7-8), the Hawks’ scouting department can’t be certain yet exactly which picks they’re scouting for.

The highest-stakes condition involves the Hawks’ own first-rounder, which will go to the Blue Jackets unless they win the lottery for the first or second overall pick. In that case, the Hawks’ 2023 first-round pick will go to the Jackets.

The Hawks, who entered play Monday sitting 25th in the league standings, currently have a 5.8% chance of getting the No. 1 pick and a 6.2% chance of getting the No. 2 pick. That gives them a 12% chance of keeping the pick.

The Hawks getting the No. 2 pick would spark a fascinating, albeit irrelevant, argument about whether they would be better off relinquishing it and keeping their 2023 first-rounder (not that they would have that option).

The 2022 class has a stud top prospect in Shane Wright, but it drops off significantly after that. Logan Cooley, Matthew Savoie, Juraj Slavkovsky, Simon Nemec, David Jiricek, Joakim Kemell, Danila Yurov and others will be in the conversation for No. 2.

The 2023 class, conversely, is considered much deeper. And the Hawks probably will be equally bad — if not worse — next season, setting themselves up for another high pick, provided they still own it.

On the other hand, even the worst team in the league has only a 44.4% chance of getting a top-two pick in the lottery (and the second-worst team only a 25.7% chance), so the Hawks statistically would be better off with a locked-in No. 2 pick. And the dynamics of the 2023 class might evolve as players’ stocks rise and fall next season, as well.

The condition on the first- or second-round pick the Hawks received from the Wild for goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, meanwhile, leaves nothing up to debate.

The Hawks would benefit from the Wild advancing to the Western Conference finals with Fleury winning four-plus games in the first two rounds. That would activate the first-round condition. The Athletic’s playoff probabilities give the Wild a 26% chance of making it that far right now.

But the Wild making it that far also would guarantee the pick would fall between 29th and 32nd. If they’re eliminated before then, the pick would fall between 49th and 60th. That gap surely poses a planning and scouting challenge.

The Lightning’s first-round pick in 2023 (as well as 2024) is top-10-protected, which only would apply if they somehow missed the playoffs. That seems highly unlikely, but it still creates slight uncertainty.

The third round in this coming draft might be rather chaotic for the Hawks, too.

They traded their own third-rounder to the Hurricanes for a 2021 third-rounder, which they used to select defensive prospect Taige Harding, but they own the Maple Leafs’ pick from the Nikita Zadorov trade, the Golden Knights’ pick from the Mattias Janmark trade and the Oilers’ pick from the Duncan Keith trade.

And if the Oilers somehow make it to the Stanley Cup Final with Keith occupying a top-four defenseman role through the playoffs, that pick becomes a second-rounder. So, in an ideal world, the Hawks want a Wild-Oilers matchup and an Oilers victory in the Western Conference finals.

It’s all part of an atypically convoluted set of draft assets with which the Hawks are working. But at least they have those assets.

Read More

Monday’s result: Padres 9, Sox 8

Tony’s not telling

Lucas Giolito pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings against the Padres and Lance Lynn got up five times and threw 70 pitches in a B game against the Dodgers in Glendale, Ariz.

Both are candidates to be the Opening Day starter April 8 in Detroit. Manager Tony La Russa said he knows who it is but he wasn’t ready to announce it.

“If I answered it ‘undecided’ that would be dishonest,’ ” La Russa said. “So you are better off not answering it.

“You guys have had so much news happening in camp. When things get a little slowed down and you need something, we’ll give it to you.”

Mixed bag for Lucas

Giolito struck out five, walked three and gave up three hits. He has nine strikeouts and four walks in 6 2/3 spring innings covering two starts. He retired the first seven batters, then walked two to load the bases in the third, escaping by getting Manny Machado to hit into a double play.

“Just a little lapse in focus for a few batters in a row but getting reps like that in a bigger situation in a spring training game is good preparation for the regular season,” Giolito said.

With his pitch count at 66, Giolito was lifted with two outs in the fourth. He and Lynn will have one more start in Arizona.

Jimenez goes deep

Eloy Jimenez, who homered to left against Joe Musgrove, is 8-for-19 (.421) with three doubles and seven RBI this spring. Nick Ciuffo, a non-roster invitee who has 48 games of major league experience with the Rays and Orioles and has been getting plenty of looks during camp, caught Giolito and doubled down the first base line, his second double

On deck

Off day Tuesday. Dylan Cease is slated for four innings against the Rangers Wednesday.

Read More

In a vacuum, the Blackhawks’ 6-5 loss to the Sabres on Monday was their worst loss in years.

They blew a 4-0 lead at home against the NHL’s perennial punching bag, ultimately losing with 12 seconds left in regulation on a broken-stick shot that caromed off the end-boards, off Kevin Lankinen’s pad and across the goal line.

Considering the game’s utter lack of stakes, it’s probably not actually the Hawks’ worst loss in years in context. But that should take nothing away from the embarrassment of the team’s effort from the first intermission on.

Their defensive coverage was laughably awful, leaving Sabres attackers wide open all over the zone on every shift. Their mental fortitude was nonexistent, even squandering a 5-4 lead gifted by an Alex DeBrincat power-play snipe after they’d already thrown away the original four-goal cushion. And goalie Kevin Lankinen cast more serious doubt that he can be a reliable backstop for this team moving forward.

The final stats tell the story: the Sabres led 68-38 in shot attempts, 37-21 in shots on goal and 29-13 in scoring chances.

Interim coach Derek King was rightly as angry as he has been all season.

“We stopped playing the game the right way,” King said. “We just decided upon ourselves to go and do what they wanted to do. Didn’t do anything we asked them to do.

“I’m very surprised, disappointed. And they should be disappointed. We’ll find out come next game how disappointed they really are about losing a game like that.”

Toews nears milestone

Of course, the Hawks’ next game — Thursday against the Panthers — will also be Jonathan Toews’ 1,000th career game, and the anticipatory buzz the next few days will likely drown out the lingering bitterness from Monday’s defeat.

Considering the health issues Toews has overcome in recent years, it will be a significant accomplishment. He’ll be the 358th player in NHL history to achieve the milestone and the eighth to play 1,000 games with the Hawks.

Since returning from a concussion in early March, the captain has looked more and more like himself and finally has gotten the production to show for it. He scored in the first period Monday for his sixth goal in his last 10 games and 10th point in his last 13.

But he, too, struggled to feel anything but frustration Monday night, given the way the rest of the game played out.

“What we’re not doing right is right there in front of us, so it’s not really a confidence thing,” he said. “[We’re not] keeping the game simple and identifying little ways that we can make things hard for them and not give them free offense. We just let them walk in everywhere, just making plays through us, [getting] no sticks on pucks and go down the list.”

Injury updates

Tyler Johnson was activated from injured reserve and played Monday after recovering from his latest concussion. Connor Murphy, although still on long-term injured reserve, might be nearing a return from his concussion, too.

”He has been skating and working out, and he said he’s feeling really good,” interim coach Derek King said. ”I believe some of the symptoms are not there or close to being not there.”

De Haan snaps streak

Defenseman Calvin de Haan entered the game a month away from finishing a fifth consecutive season with exactly one goal.

But his streak is now dead. De Haan saw the net wide-open in the first period — after forward Taylor Raddysh executed a clever shot-fake and pass — and blasted the puck in for his second goal in 61 games this season.

Read More

NEW YORK – DeMar DeRozan wasn’t going to pull punches.

Not after this latest loss.

One game after a huge win in Cleveland over the weekend that had the Bulls strutting into the Big Apple? Bam! A left hook that few saw coming from a Knicks team that was supposed to be making summer vacation plans.

Even with DeRozan’s 37 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, the Bulls (43-32) ended up earning a season split with Tom Thibodeau’s club in the wake of Monday’s 109-104 loss.

With Toronto getting the win over Boston, the Raptors have the same record as the Bulls, but lost the season series and the tie-breaker. Cleveland was now a game back for that play-in spot and the No. 7 seed.

In other words, this Bulls team still can’t figure out how to get out of its own way.

“Cleveland was a big game for us, we had an opportunity [Monday] to keep that going, but now we dropped this one,” DeRozan said. “It sucks, it’s frustrating, but we’ve got to let it be frustrating and then take it out on Washington. That’s all we can do. We can’t dwell on it too much. We’ve got to get this feeling off of us.”

Easier said than done, especially with how the night set up for the Bulls at Madison Square Garden.

It was pretty easy to see how the Bulls built an 11-point lead right out of the gate in that first quarter, shooting 4-for-6 from three-point range while the Knicks couldn’t throw it in the Hudson River if they were standing on Pier 46.

The 1-for-8 was evidence of that, as New York also started the game allowing the visiting team to shoot 63.2% from the field.

As efficient as that Bulls offense looked in those first 12 minutes, it was just as easy to see how that lead was lost a quarter later.

Six turnovers, 0-for-6 from three, and the Bulls watched a big lead slip to a three-point deficit at the half.

“That’s on us,” DeRozan said. “Once we got down, back to fighting that uphill battle. We’ve got to play hard no matter how we’re playing offensively.”

New York took a 81-75 lead into the fourth quarter, and that’s when DeRozan really started to do what he does best this season – take over the game.

Whether it was the mid-range or drawing fouls, DeRozan scored nine points in less than six minutes, bringing the Bulls to within four.

Not that Thibodeau didn’t expect it.

“I think it’s more the value of the shot,” Thibodeau said of DeRozan’s stellar season. “What people sometimes overlook is what he brings to the team. His ability to get into the restricted [area], his ability to get to the free throw line, and his ability to create value shots.

“In many ways he reminds me of [former Bull Jimmy] Butler. Butler wasn’t a great three-point shooter but you could always have great offense because of his passing ability, we know the value of free throws, we know the value of [scoring in] restricted [area], and they can create those shots. Then you look at DeMar and he’s always been a high-assist guy as well.”

As good as DeRozan was, the play of the game came with 23.2 seconds left, after DeRozan had cut it to a one-point game. A driving Immanuel Quickley found a wide-open Alec Burks in the corner for a three that ended up being the dagger.

“I got to do a better job,” DeRozan added. “All of us, but it starts with myself, Zach [LaVine], Vooch [Nikola Vucevic], AC [Alex Caruso] … we just have too many lapses where we get out of sync and that dictates our offense and our defense.”

Read More

GOODYEAR, Ariz. – The top of the rotation has already started bonding.

Cubs veteran Kyle Hendricks and newcomer Marcus Stroman, who started the Cubs’ Cactus League game against the Reds on Monday, are expected to be the Cubs’ No. 1 and 2 starters. But they’ve both lobbied for the other to get the opening day start.

“Hendricks is the guy,” Stroman said last week. “He’s been doing this for a long time. I’ll pitch Day 5 — I really don’t care when I pitch. . . . I’ve never been prideful on that. I truly believe Hendricks should be the Opening Day [starter] just because of his career, how unbelievable he’s been in the playoffs. His resume speaks for itself.”

Hendricks said Stroman’s vote of confidence means a lot, but he’s told Stroman the same. Ross has not yet named an opening day starter, but Hendricks has been his opening day starter the past two seasons.

“I’m just so excited to pitch alongside him,” Hendricks said of Stroman. “And we know that whoever gets the first game, we’re excited for just the whole road together, to be together as a staff, me, him, Wade [Miley], see what we can do at the top of this rotation and set the tone and the identity for us.”

Hendricks and Stroman only really got to know each other this spring. They’d pitched against each other before, and had a quick exchange warming up before the game.

“We’ve kind of just gotten to know each other personally right now, just get to know each other as guys,” Hendricks said when asked what they could learn from each other, “and he’s just an awesome human being overall, him and his family, everything about him.

“But when we get into the nitty gritty of it into the season, definitely it’s gonna be fun to learn from each other. And we pitch in similar styles for sure. He’s got some other secondary stuff, but the way we use our fastballs, his sinker, especially, it’s gonna be fun to watch just how he attacks guys and take some things from him.”

On Monday, Stroman threw four innings, putting him on track to build up to around five frames in his final spring training start. Stroman allowed two runs on two hits against the Reds.

Miley and Givens bounce back

Cubs starter Wade Miley and reliever Mychal Givens felt good Monday, the day after both throwing live batting practice for the first time this spring.

“Talking to Mychal on the bench yesterday, he felt really good, stuff was coming out well, feels like his timing is just not quite there yet, which is to be expected,” Ross said. “As long as the arm’s healthy, the balls coming out the right way, especially with his arm slot, get that timing down.”

On deck

The Cubs are set to face the Diamondbacks Tuesday afternoon. Cubs lefty Justin Steele is scheduled to take the mound opposite a former rotation mate, Arizona right-hander Zach Davies.

Read More