NFL

• Colts hire Shane Steichen as head coach
  • The Colts desperately need a new direction, especially at the quarterback position, so hiring Steichen makes sense from that perspective. Steichen, along with several others on the Eagles’ coaching staff, did a good job of developing Jalen Hurts, so Indianapolis will certainly lean on his expertise to groom whichever signal-caller the Colts draft in the first-round. Steichen, of course, is unproven as an NFL head coach, but this hire absolutely has a chance to work out.
    Grade: B-
• Cardinals hire Jonathan Gannon as head coach
  • The Cardinals, perhaps more than any other team, needed a fresh start. Consider that accomplished, as Arizona completely cleaned house, adding Monti Ossenfort as general manager and now Gannon as head coach. Gannon obviously won’t offer much assistance in terms of developing and fixing Kyler Murray, but the former Eagles defensive coordinator will help change the culture in the dessert — and probably for the better. The Cardinals probably need more than a quick retool, but at least they’re trying to move in a new direction.
    Grade: B-
• Raiders release QB Derek Carr
  • This move was expected, as the quarterback held a February 15th trigger date for adding $40.4 million in guaranteed money to his contract. Now, both the Raiders and Carr will have some decisions to make. Carr should be in high demand, as there are plenty of clubs across the league that could use an established signal-caller. The Raiders’ situation is a bit more precipitous, as Las Vegas doesn’t pick in the first-round until No. 7, where multiple signal-callers could already be off the board. On a more positive note, there may be a few veterans available to the Raiders, but that may come at a price.

NBA

• Raptors 123, Magic 113
  • Well then. It certainly didn’t take long for Jakob Poeltl to make an impact for the Raptors, as the center shot 15-17 in this game, scoring 30 points. Poeltl also blocked six shots for a Raptors team in which things are starting to potentially come together for. Toronto isn’t quite good enough to challenge Boston, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, or Cleveland in the East, but the Raptors can compete with the conference’s next group.
• Bucks 131, Celtics 125
  • Boston was missing a plethora of key players for this contest, but that doesn’t matter in the standings, which now show Milwaukee just 0.5 games back of the Celtics. Jrue Holiday received the benefit of the doubt in being selected to the All-Star team, but he was awesome last night, recording 40 points, five rebounds, and seven assists. 11 wins in a row for the Bucks.
  • Derrick White has taken a step forward for the Celtics, which could be huge for the team come May and June. The combo guard is averaging 27.7 points over his last three games.
• Suns 120, Kings 109
  • There’s obviously been some slippage in Chris Paul’s game this season, but he’s still an excellent floor general. Paul dished out 19 assists yesterday, and the Suns, winners of seven of their last 10, are in good shape as they await Kevin Durant’s return from injury.
  • Sacramento needs more consistency out of rookie Keegan Murray. By nature, young players offer less reliability than established veterans, but for a playoff hopeful, it’s on Murray to offer more stability. Murray’s point totals for February: 2, 3, 2, 30, 10, 16, 5, 6.

NCAAB

• Vanderbilt 75, South Carolina 64
  • This probably speaks more to the weakness of the bottom of the SEC than anything, but Vanderbilt has now won four in a row. The Commodores won’t make the NCAA Tournament or anything, but the program is taking a step forward. Liam Robbins, in particular, is a unique and interesting player. The 7’0″ Robbins scored 24 points last night.
• Providence 94, Creighton 86
  • This was an outrageously impressive win by Providence. The Friars attacked Creighton in a number of ways in this tilt, as Devin Carter, Bryce Hopkins, and Noah Locke all had at least 20 points. I don’t see any way that the Friars make the Final Four, but to beat Creighton with Jared Bynum shooting 1-9 is undoubtedly a good sign.
  • Creighton, after winning eight games in a row, was due for a loss. The Bluejays have basically no bench, and the team’s starters seemed gassed late in this contest, as all five of them played at least 45 minutes. Arthur Kaluma may have to level up for Creighton to reach its potential.
• Syracuse 75, NC State 72
  • The ACC is a bit better than the advanced metrics say it is, but the league isn’t good this year by any means. Virginia is the only member of the conference that I trust. NC State missed an opportunity in this game to continue stacking wins, and now some reevaluation has to occur for the Wolfpack.

MLB

• Padres sign SP Michael Wacha
  • It’s hard to feel too strongly one way or another regarding this deal since exact numbers haven’t been publicized. Wacha was solid last year for the Red Sox, pitching to the tune of a 3.32 ERA over 23 starts, although advanced metrics weren’t quite as kind to the 31-year-old. The Padres traded away quite a bit of their young rotation options in recent years, so Wacha helps fill a need in San Diego.
    Grade: C+