NFL

Seahawks hire Mike Macdonald as head coach

Macdonald has been a fast riser throughout the coaching universe at just 36, but with three seasons of experience as a defensive coordinator — two with the Ravens — he should be ready to take on this position. Seattle is making a massive transition from Pete Carroll, the NFL’s oldest head coach in 2023, to Macdonald, the youngest, but I like the chances of it paying off. With the Seahawks, Macdonald will have an abundance of young talent to work with, starting with Devon Witherspoon.

Grade: B

Packers hire Jeff Hafley as head coach

This is a slam-dunk hire. Sure, Hafley didn’t turn Boston College into a powerhouse during his four seasons in Chestnut Hill, but he’s a dynamite defensive coordinator, as evidenced by his days with Ohio State. I’m a bit surprised Green Bay was able to lure Hafley into this position, but an NFL defensive coordinator job is probably better than being Boston College’s head coach. I wouldn’t be stunned if Hafley became a head coach in the NFL sometime soon.

Grade: A

NBA

Cavaliers 128, Pistons 121

Cleveland has to be thrilled to have all of its key pieces back together. Darius Garland and Evan Mobley combined for just 42 minutes in this contest, but it won’t take long until each player returns to playing his normal load. Earlier this season, it felt like it would require a miracle for the Cavaliers to match their 51-31 mark from a season ago, but at 29-16, that record is well within reach.

Bulls 117, Hornets 110

As Zach LaVine has gone down, Coby White has gone up. LaVine, a two-time All-Star, is arguably falling out of favor with the Bulls and the NBA as a whole, but Coby White is a having a career year to make up for it. In this game, White played 43 minutes, scoring 35 points for Chicago.

At 10-36, Charlotte is obviously buried in the standings, and should probably make everyone outside of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller available in trade talks. In discussions, Miles Bridges and P.J. Washington would be a great place for the Hornets to start, although Bridges has plenty of off-court baggage to answer for. In this tilt, Bridges tallied 30 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.

Clippers 125, Wizards 109

No team in the NBA has a deeper assortment of perimeter talent than the Clippers. Everyone knows about Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, James Harden and Russell Westbrook, but that isn’t all Tyronn Lue has to work with. Norman Powell is a microwave off the bench for LA, and he scored 14 points last night. Not far behind Powell in effectiveness are Terance Mann and Amir Coffey. That isn’t all, though, as Brandon Boston, Bones Hyland and Kobe Brown can’t be forgotten as interesting prospects. The Clippers do need more size, though, but that situation will improve when Ivica Zubac returns from injury.

It happened! Bilal Coulibaly finally drew a start for the Wizards yesterday, but only due to Jordan Poole being out. Unsurprisingly, the rookie recorded 19 points, one steal and two blocks.

Heat 115, Kings 106

The Heat, after a tough losing streak, really needed this one, and who better for Miami to turn to with its back against the wall than Jimmy Butler? Butler, as expected, delivered with 31 points, seven rebounds and six assists. The Heat has a few winnable games at the beginning of February, so Erik Spoelstra’s team has the schedule to avoid another slump.

The Kings shouldn’t be feeling good about wasting a great Keegan Murray game. The second-year forward exploded for 33 points on seven made three pointers yesterday.

Timberwolves 121, Mavericks 87

Dallas needs reinforcements, badly. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving missed this game for the Mavericks, but the end result shouldn’t have looked this ugly for Dallas. For Minnesota, Anthony Edwards didn’t even need to a break a sweat, as the talented wing attempted just five shots in 30 minutes.

Magic 108, Spurs 98

Orlando has a good thing going. With Franz Wagner only in year three and Paolo Banchero only in year two, the Magic already has a young supporting cast around them that mostly fits around each player’s strengths. With this cohesive unit, Orlando typically wins when both Banchero and Wagner perform well, such as this game, where the young forwards combined for 45 points.

The Spurs already know this, but Devin Vassell is a keeper. The 23-year-old wing is averaging 25 points per game over his past three contests.

Thunder 105, Nuggets 100

Nikola Jokic didn’t suit up in this game for Denver, but that doesn’t mean this wasn’t a big win for Oklahoma City, which moved ahead of the Nuggets in the standings with the victory. Three of the Thunder’s starters didn’t stuff the stat sheet last night, but all Oklahoma City needed was Shai Gilgeous Alexander’s 34 points and Chet Holmgren’s 18 points and five blocks. The betting odds suggest Victor Wembanyama is the favorite, but Holmgren should win Rookie of the Year.

In games without Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets need big production out of Michael Porter. Porter didn’t deliver yesterday, attempting 17 field goals, but scoring just 15 points.

Suns 136, Nets 120

It’s hard to envision the 28-20 Suns not continuing to stack wins, as long as they remain healthy. Phoenix’s best player, Kevin Durant, finally got off the schneid in this game, scoring 33 points versus one of his former teams.

Trail Blazers 119, Bucks 116

Good for the Trail Blazers. Damian Lillard forced his way out of Portland this offseason, so at least the Trail Blazers can take solace in this victory. Scoot Henderson likely won’t ever top the level of play Lillard achieved in Portland, but he can be good in his own right, and he put together a nice performance last night, accumulating 15 points and four assists.

For Lillard’s new team, the record (32-16) may be fine, but the vibes (bad) certainly aren’t fine. That can change, though, but we’ll likely have to wait until the playoffs for that to occur. In the meantime, Lillard could be more efficient as a shooter, as the eight-time All-Star shot 9-for-23 in this tilt.

NCAAB

Purdue 105, Northwestern 96

Northwestern is a solid team, so it shouldn’t come as a shock, but Purdue has struggled with the Wildcats this season. In the end, having the best player in the country helps, and Zach Edey lived up to that billing last night, scoring 30 points and grabbing 15 boards.

Alabama 85, Georgia 76

Alabama took it on the chin in the first half of this game, but as expected, talent eventually won out, and the Crimson Tide has plenty of it. Alabama is particularly good on the offensive end, and Nate Oats deserves nearly all the credit for that. Oats is better than any college basketball coach I’ve seen at getting the best shots (dunks, free throws and three pointers) for his team. He’s a wizard.

For Georgia, perhaps this game would’ve ended differently had Jabri Abdur-Rahim not fouled out in just 20 minutes of action.

Xavier 86, St. John’s 77

It might be time for Rick Pitino to reduce Chris Ledlum’s minutes. Ledlum is an experienced senior, but he’s struggled of late, and the extra minutes could open opportunities for any combination of Jordan Dingle, Nahiem Alleyne, Brady Dunlap and RJ Luis. The Big East is a war and St. John’s can’t afford to lose too many more games like this one.

Baylor 77, UCF 69

Baylor almost always gets quality guard play, but Yves Missi at the center position makes this Bears team a bit different. Just a freshman, Missi had 11 points and two blocks last night, which was more than enough for Baylor when added to Langston Love’s 24 points off the bench.

Johnny Dawkins deserves a ton of credit for UCF being as competitive as it has been in Big 12 play. The Knights are tough and talented, and the play of Darius Johnson almost enabled UCF to upset Baylor in this game. Johnson recorded 23 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists for the Knights.

West Virginia 69, Cincinnati 65

Maybe West Virginia isn’t as bad as many thought. Now fully healthy, the 8-13 Mountaineers looked like a solid Big 12 team in this game, and Jesse Edwards looked like the best player on the floor, scoring 25 points and bringing down 10 rebounds. The NCAA Tournament is out of the question for West Virginia unless it wins the Big 12 Tournament, but the Mountaineers are taking tangible steps forward.

Speaking of the NCAA Tournament, this loss obviously won’t help 14-7 Cincinnati’s chances. The Bearcats play hard and have size, but an overall lack of identity and lead guy are problems for the Bearcats. One of Cincinnati’s top players, Victor Lahkin, struggled mightily in this contest to the tune of zero points in 18 frustrating minutes.