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After one game with the Dallas Mavericks, former All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas entered the NBA’s health and safety protocols on Thursday.

Thomas was signed to a 10-day hardship deal on Wednesday to replace Brandon Knight, another hardship-deal addition who entered the league’s protocols after testing positive for COVID-19.

Thomas, whose 10-day deal with the Los Angeles Lakers expired earlier this week, said he was grocery shopping near his Seattle home Wednesday morning when Mavs general manager Nico Harrison called to inquire about whether he could play in Sacramento that night. He quickly booked a flight and arrived in Sacramento a little more than four hours before tipoff.

Isaiah Thomas signed a 10-day hardship deal with the Mavs on Wednesday and had six points and four assists later that night in a loss to the Kings. Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

“I was like, ‘Hell yeah I can play tonight!'” Thomas said after scoring six points and dishing out four assists in 13 minutes during the Mavs’ 95-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings, receiving a standing ovation when he entered the game. “I just actually got home from L.A. [on Tuesday]. It’s been a lot, but I’m built for this. I’m ready for it. I’m thankful for the opportunity. And it was a no-brainer when he asked.”

However, Thomas stint with the Mavs might last only one game, with the team optimistic that several players will be returning soon and with Thomas’ 10-day deal likely to expire while he’s in the league’s protocols. The Mavs currently have eight players in the protocols.

Thomas, 32, was a two-time All-Star for the Boston Celtics before a serious hip injury derailed his career. He has spent most of the past two seasons out of the league, playing a total of seven games on 10-day deals with the New Orleans Pelicans in April and Lakers this month.

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MARLY-LE-ROI, France — No more munching, crunching and slurping at the movies in France: The country’s increasingly fraught fight against an unprecedented surge in coronavirus infections is putting a stop to eating and drinking at French cinemas, just as they show signs of recovering from the brutal economic bashing of lockdowns last year.

COVID-19 measures kicking in Monday, once France’s New Year’s celebrations are out of the way, will mean an enforced rest for popcorn machines and ice creams left in cold storage. The ban of at least three weeks on eating and drinking also applies to theaters, sports venues and public transport.

For cinema owners hoping to lure back movie fans who switched to home-viewing during the pandemic, not being able to tempt them with candies and soft drinks is another blow. French cinemas sold 96 million tickets in the eight months they have been reopened this year, a jump of 47% compared to 2020. But ticket sales are still down 55% compared to 2019, before the pandemic, the National Center for Film and Moving Images said Thursday in its look at French cinemas’ annual sales.

Benoit Cin? Distribution, which supplies 70% of France’s cinemas with popcorn, sweet treats and drinks, was deluged with both order postponements and delivery requests from movie houses expecting good sales on the final weekend before the food and drink ban, with “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Matrix Resurrections” featuring on billboards.

“It’s like being told to apply the emergency brake to the high-speed train,” said Vincent Meyer, a director at Benoit.

Against raging coronavirus infections, the government is hoping its latest measures will also apply a brake on the fast-spreading omicron variant, but without derailing France’s economic recovery that is a vote-getter for President Emmanuel Macron, facing reelection in April.

As well as the food and drink ban, there’ll once again also be limits on crowd numbers at public venues, with no more than 2,000 allowed indoors and 5,000 outdoors. The limits don’t apply to election campaign rallies, infuriating some musicians who will no longer be allowed to perform for stand-up crowds. Some suggested, only half-jokingly, that they may rebrand their concerts as political rallies.

France’s COVID-19 death toll is already at more than 123,000 people. New infections are higher than they have ever been and hospitals are again overburdened with the gravely sick.

Michel Enten, manager of the Le Fontenelle cinema in the town of Marly-le-Roi west of Paris, was relieved to stay open, even if he’ll no longer be able to sell cotton candy, popcorn, ices and drinks. He says he has lost about half of his clientele during the pandemic. He expects the ban on food and drinks to hit larger cinemas particularly hard and says it may even help lure back fans to smaller, arty cinemas like his.

“There are lots of people who hate hearing the sounds of popcorn in the auditoriums,” he said. “Perhaps we will win over new movie fans, people who were watching Netflix and are saying to themselves, ‘Now there’s no more popcorn, let’s run to the cinema.’ “

Cinemagoers said they understood the need for new measures, although some struggled to see any logic in not being able to indulge their sweet cravings in cinemas or theaters when restaurants are still allowed to serve food and drinks.

“It’s going to be strange to just go to the cinema and do without all these little moments,” Vincent Bourdais said as he lined up in Marly-le-Roi for “Spider-Man.”

“Often, when one imagines the cinema, one thinks of the auditorium, the beautiful posters, the popcorn, the smells.”

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The city of Seattle has 35 snowplows. Sunday, David Montgomery made it 36.

Playing in snow that left most of the Seahawks’ home city paralyzed, the Bears running back decided that it would be easier to go through opponents than around them.

“I think he went out there with a purpose, like he does every single day and every week,” running backs coach Michael Pitre said. “And obviously the weather, I think, forced him to have to really early make a decision that he’s just gonna put his foot in the ground and get some ugly runs — but they were good runs — and force those guys to have to tackle him.”

About six minutes into the game, Montgomery took a handoff left, then cut it back to the right and out toward the numbers. Seahawks cornerback Sidney Jones tried to tackle him, but Montgomery lowered his right shoulder, knocked him to the ground and pushed off with his right arm. For his efforts against Jones, Montgomery was awarded the “Angry Runs” scepter by NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football.”

“Sometimes in those kind of conditions it’s just easier to go straight at them,” offensive coordinator Bill Lazor said Thursday. “And David certainly looked like he had that mindset the way he was playing.”

At the end of his third season, it’s clear that Montgomery is one of the few sure things on the Bears’ offense. Despite missing four games this season with a knee injury, Montgomery has a chance to reach 1,000 rushing yards for the second year in a row. It will take outstanding performances against the Giants and Vikings, though — he’s 287 yards shy of quadruple digits.

If the Bears offense has an identity, it’s Montgomery when he’s at his toughest and most physical. Whomever coaches the Bears next season needs to build around that, even while developing quarterback Justin Fields.

“I’m like that every week,” Montgomery said Thursday. “Ever since I’ve been in the league, that’s been who I am. That’s just how I run. I run with physicality. You could turn on the film and see that every chance I get, I’m straining just to be the best I can be on every opportunity I get.

“So it wasn’t just a [one-] week thing. It was just me being me.”

Montgomery had never played in such snowy conditions before. He said it was tough to get his footing at first, though conditions improved in the second half. His two catches on the Bears final scoring drive were as impressive as any trucking he did earlier in the game. They came on back-to-back plays immediately after receiver Darnell Mooney caught a pass and fought for 30 yards with the Bears down seven with 2:45 to play.

With the ball at the Seahawks’ 35, Montgomery caught a swing pass, met his first tackler at the 32 — and dragged him to the 25. On the next play, he caught a checkdown in the middle of the field and plowed forward for 14 yards.

“The biggest thing was to get vertical,” he said. “Don’t be messing around, trying to make people miss. Just go get vertical and take what you can get — and that’s what I did. And it worked out.”

Montgomery finished the game as the Bears’ leading receiver, catching seven passes for 61 yards. His ability to set the tone early — and late –provided the Bears offense with a rare bright spot.

“I thought those were huge plays,” Lazor said. “Yeah, he looked like he was all for going straight ahead. And it worked out.”

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When quarterback Nick Foles engineered a six-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to give the Bears a 25-24 lead over the Seahawks with 1:01 to go on Sunday, it stunned the home crowd at Lumen Field. But, believe it or not, the Bears had been there before.

Not only was it the third time this season the Bears had pulled off a desperation rally to take the lead in the final two minutes, but they’ve done it with three different quarterbacks.

Justin Fields, in the signature moment of his rookie season, drove the Bears 75 yards on seven plays to give the Bears a 27-26 lead over the Steelers with 1:46 left in the fourth quarter at Heinz Field on Nov. 8. And Andy Dalton threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Marquise Goodwin to cap a 10-play, 75-yard drive that gave the Bears a 13-9 lead over the Ravens with 1:41 left in the fourth quarter on Nov. 21.

There was one big difference against the Seahawks, though. The defense made the offensive heroics stand up, allowing the Bears to celebrate a road victory instead of just applaud a futile fourth-quarter rally. The Ravens drove 72 yards on five plays for a touchdown with 22 seconds left to win 16-13. The Steelers drove 52 yards on seven plays for Chris Boswell’s 40-yard field goal with 26 seconds left for 29-27 victory.

If Tyler Huntley could rally the Ravens to a game-winning touchdown in 1:19 after Goodwin’s touchdown catch, the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson was certainly capable of doing the same with 1:01 left last week.

But the Bears’ defense barely allowed Wilson to get started. The Seahawks gained five net yards on seven plays — from their 27-yard-line to the 32 — before Wilson’s fourth-and-five pass to Tyler Lockett was incomplete to clinch the Bears’ victory.

‘It was awesome,” Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai said. “That’s a big point of emphasis, to make sure we play great in the fourth quarter — and we did that.”

On second-and-six, Bears defensive end Angelo Blackson drew a holding penalty on Seahawks center Ethan Pocic. On third-and-16, linebacker Roquan Smith tackled Lockett a half-yard short of a first down. That loomed even bigger when tight end Gerald Everett was called for a false-start, setting up the fourth-and-five incompletion that clinched the victory.

The Bears’ defense came into the game ranked 26th in fourth-quarter points allowed (110). But they shut out the Seahawks (who came in 28th in fourth-quarter scoring) in the fourth quarter.

The Seahawks were driving for a likely clinching score midway through the fourth quarter, with a first down at the Bears’ 14 with a 24-17 lead. But on third-and-four from the Bears’ 8, linebacker Robert Quinn sacked Wilson for a 13-yard loss, and Jason Myers missed a 39-yard field goal with 7:18 to play.

“There was a little bit of adversity for our guys,” Desai said. “At a time like that, we all know you need your big-time players to step up and make big plays. Our big-time players did that. Robert stepped up and made a huge sack, which was tremendous.”

“Really proud of those guys — how they stayed in the game the whole time. They didn’t get frustrated, stayed with the plan and settled themselves down to execute when we needed the best execution.”

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Even with the extra days added, the NHL’s holiday break wasn’t quite long enough for Dominik Kubalik to go home to Plzen, Czech Republic.

So instead, his mom traveled from Plzen to spend the holiday in Chicago with Kubalik and his wife, Klara.

“We had Czech Christmas,” Kubalik said Thursday with a smile. “It’s always nice to have someone from the family around. We had all the Czech stuff, Czech food and everything.”

His mom’s trip was intended to overlap with the Blackhawks’ home-heavy December schedule, giving her several nights to watch her son play in person. But because of all the recent cancellations, she hasn’t seen a minute of competitive hockey yet. With her flight back to Europe coming up soon, the Hawks’ next two games — Saturday at the Predators and Sunday hosting the Flames — will be her last chances to catch Kubalik in action.

Still, having her around recently has helped Kubalik realize how at-ease he has become in Chicago.

It has been more than two years since he arrived wide-eyed for his rookie season, needing countryman David Kampf to show him around the Hawks’ locker room during 2019 training camp. In NHL terms, that’s a long time in one place.

“I just remember when I first got here, everything was new, everything was big, there were all these people around,” he said. “I’ve gotten used to it and I feel comfortable. And you can even see it [by] when my mom was here the first time, she was a little scared of everything, and right now, she’s OK to go anywhere. It definitely feels like a second home.”

How much longer Kubalik gets to call Chicago home may well depend on his performance the rest of this season.

As a restricted free agent due a $3.7 million qualifying offer next summer but struggling significantly through the first chunk of this season, trade rumors are logically beginning to swirl. The latest buzz in Czech hockey media is Kubalik could be on the Oilers’ radar.

Kubalik’s play seemed to be finally improving just before the holiday break, though. By tipping in a Brandon Hagel shot, he got credit for the tying third-period goal Dec. 18 against the Stars, extending his technically still-alive point streak to four straight games.

“Offensively, [I’m trying] be around the net, create my own luck,” he said. “That’s what happened last game. I was just standing there, trying to get away from the shot, and Hagel just hit me. It’s nice sometimes to be lucky.”

He and interim coach Derek King talked often in November, during the depths of his slump, and King tried to be as positive as possible in those conversations to build back his confidence.

That approach started working in December. Over Kubalik’s first 22 games, the Hawks were outscored 18-5 and recorded a woeful 40.3% scoring chance ratio during his even-strength ice time. Over his last eight games (since Dec. 4), the Hawks have outscored their opponents 7-4 and recorded a 50.0% scoring chance ratio during his even-strength ice time.

After practice Thursday, Kubalik and King caught up with each other to discuss his progress.

“He just asked me if I had seen anything,” King said. “I said, ‘What I’ve seen is you’re playing without the puck.’ He has done a great job for us that way, and then he’s going to the net, [doing] all the little things we ask from him.

“That was my message to him: if he continues to do that, the offense [and] the confidence will get there. He’ll shoot one in the net instead of it going off his hip or whatever.”

Kubalik’s shooting frequency and accuracy rates remain well below his career averages, and he acknowledged that’s one area he still needs to improve. But at least he’ll enter the second part of this season trending upward and rejuvenated by family time.

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The Sun-Times’ experts offer their picks for the Bears’ home finale Sunday against the Giants:

Rick Morrissey

Bears 20-17

The Bears are just as bad as the Giants are, which is to say I have as much confidence in this prediction as I do in whomever the Bears trot out to play quarterback. If there’s a COVID-19 mask that covers the eyes, I’d recommend it for watching Sunday’s game. Somebody has to win this one, right? Unless it’s a tie. Hmmm. Season: 12-3.

Rick Telander

Bears 30-21

Both teams are on streaks: the Giants have lost four in a row, the Bears have won one in a row. With Covid rampant we have no idea who will show up–maybe Rusty Lisch gets QB reps? Eliminated or not, believe Matt Nagy wants this one on his resume. Season: 11-4.

Patrick Finley

Bears 24-10

It won’t matter who the Bears — or Giants — start at quarterback. Amazingly, Justin Fields, Andy Dalton and Nick Foles are all better than anyone Big Blue can put under center. Season: 11-4.

Jason Lieser

Bears 30-13

There aren’t many teams worse than the Bears, but the Giants are one of them. This is one of the most favorable matchups the Bears have had this season, and they’re sure to enjoy it. Season: 12-3.

Mark Potash

Bears 22-10

The Bears are determined to finish a bad season on a good note and have the wherewithal to at least do that — especially against the Giants, who have lost four straight. Season: 11-4.

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Mark Giangreco has been off Chicago TV since his last sportscast Jan. 28 on ABC 7. But he’ll reappear Friday night where he did his first Chicago sportscast, NBC 5.

He and longtime New Year’s Eve partner Janet Davies will help ring in the new year with “Chicago Today” hosts Cortney Hall and Matthew Rodrigues on “A Very Chicago New Year.” Giangreco and Davies co-hosted their own countdown show on ABC 7 for 20 years before the station let both go this year.

“Janet mentioned it to NBC 5 VP of news Frank Whittaker about six months ago, and he jumped on it,” Giangreco said of the show’s conception. “Seeing it as a great chance to take a shot at [ABC] 7.”

Would you expect anything else from Giangreco?

Mark Giangreco (right) returns to Chicago TV on Friday night with longtime New Year’s Eve partner Janet Davies (left). They’ll join Cortney Hall and Matthew Rodrigues for “A Very Chicago New Year” at 11:08 p.m. on NBC 5.NBC 5

Of course, such flippant comments got Giangreco in trouble a few times during his career in Chicago, which began in 1982. But his last alleged transgression led to his ouster at ABC 7, capping a 27-year run as the station’s — and the city’s — lead sports anchor.

It also ranked first among our top 10 Chicago sports-media stories of 2021.

At the end of that fateful, final sportscast, Giangreco jokingly referred to news anchor Cheryl Burton as someone who could “play the ditzy, combative interior decorator” as part of a fictional DIY Network show. The remark didn’t sit well with Burton. She complained to the bosses, and they took Giangreco off the air.

Viewers didn’t know what had happened to Giangreco until five weeks later, when the story finally leaked. On March 12, ABC 7 and Giangreco — who had 18 months left on his contract — reached a separation agreement. It marked a sad and undeserving ending for one of the best sports personalities Chicago has ever had.

Giangreco has made the most of his time since then, spending it largely with family and friends. But on New Year’s Eve, he’d be happy to spend it with you, too.

2. Pat Foley begins last year with Blackhawks

You can’t tell me that Foley couldn’t call Hawks games for another five to 10 years. So when the Hawks announced in June that the 2021-22 season would be his last, I was stunned – and saddened. He’s my favorite announcer of all-time and the best this city has ever heard. The Hawks are auditioning potential replacements, and while their process is understandable, it also is robbing fans of chances to hear Foley in his final season. The candidates are great, but there’s only one Foley.

3. Len Kasper makes White Sox debut

Hearing a different voice calling Hawks games is one thing. Hearing the voice of the Cubs for 16 years calling White Sox games is another. Man, that was weird. Kasper is living out his childhood dream as a baseball radio announcer. When Yoan Moncada and Yermin Mercedes hit back-to-back homers in the Sox’ home opener, Kasper sounded as though he had been on the South Side forever. That’s because he’s a pro, and Sox fans are lucky to have him.

4. Jon Sciambi becomes Cubs’ TV voice

I can’t take credit for the Cubs and Marquee Sports Network hiring “Boog,” but 10 days before the Jan. 4 announcement, I wrote, “I want Jon Sciambi calling Cubs games.” And voila! It wasn’t the easiest debut season given all the challenges created by the pandemic. But Sciambi fared well, and he’ll be even better. In many ways, he’s an extension of Kasper with an even better sense of humor and a self-deprecating demeanor.

5. Leila Rahimi named Score co-host, NBC 5 anchor

Is there another woman in a local market who has a weekday sports-radio show and is a TV sports anchor? “My agent asked me the same thing, and we were trying to figure that out,” Rahimi said in November. “I wish I knew the answer. It’s unfortunate if I am the only one.” That’s the truth, but Rahimi is representing well.

6. Broadcasters battle to travel for games

In July, Sox TV voice Jason Benetti appeared on The Score and fumed about not being allowed to travel after staying home in 2020. “It’s ridiculous,” Benetti told the “Parkins & Spiegel Show.” “We, in order to do the job properly, need to be around the team.” The NBC Sports Chicago crew finally traveled in September as the Sox closed in on a division title.

7. Beth Mowins becomes first woman to call Cubs

Mowins made history May 8, calling a 3-2 victory against the Pirates at Wrigley Field, her first regular-season MLB game. She has been the voice of the Women’s College World Series for more than 20 years. “From a play-by-play standpoint, the language is the same, most of the strategy is the same,” Mowins said in February. “I grew up on TWIB Notes and ‘This Week in Baseball.’ ” That’s all I needed to hear.

8. Adam Amin calls Bears, Bulls, Cubs and Sox

Amin is the Bulls’ regular TV voice, but his job with Fox Sports gives him other opportunities. On July 10, he called a Cubs home game. On July 17, he called a Sox home game. And though he’s also the Bears’ preseason TV voice, he hadn’t called a Bears regular-season game until Oct. 31. That’s called doing “The Brick,” in honor of Jack Brickhouse, who was the voice of all four teams in 1967.

9. Eddie Olczyk becomes TNT’s lead analyst

When the NHL moved its games to ESPN and TNT, it was obvious that Olczyk would wind up at one or the other. The lead analyst for the Hawks and NBC – and the best hockey analyst on the air – chose TNT, where he joined Kenny Albert to form the network’s top pair. TNT has been a breath of fresh air for a sport whose TV coverage had become stale.

10. Hawk Harrelson finally inducted into Hall of Fame

Harrelson was supposed to be enshrined in Cooperstown in 2020, but the pandemic nixed those plans. As the recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award, given to broadcasters, Harrelson finally delivered his acceptance speech in July. It sounded like many of his broadcasts, filled with opinions and stories and told in a way only Hawk could.

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