Why Michigan Should Be The Template For New North Carolina Coach Mike…

Mike Malone has never been a college head coach and admitted at his introductory press conference Tuesday at North Carolina that he still has “a lot to learn.”

Malone, who reportedly agreed to a 6-year, $50 million deal to take over the Blue Blood program as his first college head coaching job, was asked about his approach to roster-construction in the era of NIL and the transfer portal.

“Obviously there’s a lot to learn and I’m going to surround myself with the best people possible to get a grasp on it so we can attack it,” said the 54-year-old Queens, N.Y. native.

With more than 1,700 players already in the portal as of Tuesday night, Malone and GM Jim Tanner need look no further than newly-minted national champion Michigan as a shining example of what the portal can do for a tradition-rich program.

The Wolverines, after all, won the program’s first NCAA championship since 1989 on Monday night while starting five transfers.

“I think they did a really good job of putting five or four transfers, or five players on the court at all times that are really good at passing the ball,” Michigan point guard Elliot Cadeau, who transferred out of North Carolina last year, said ahead of winning Most Outstanding Player honors at the Final Four. "And I think they knew that when they were recruiting all of us.

“Just having five people on the court that are all playmakers and also great scorers just helps us have connectivity on the court, for sure.”

Cadeau averaged 9.4 points and 6.2 assists, along with 3.1 turnovers, per game at North Carolina, Michigan coach Dusty May was asked what made him take a flyer on Cadeau in the portal last year.

“We felt like we needed a quarterback, a pass-first quarterback on the floor at all times,” May said after his team’s 69-63 victory over UConn Monday night. “I called [North Carolina assistant] Sean [May]and he gave me all of the intel. I just said, “Let me ask you one question. Would 17-18 year-old Sean May want to play with Elliot Cadeau? And he said “Expletive yeah. Absolutely, let’s go.” And I said, that’s all I needed to know because Sean is one of the smartest, best players I’ve ever been around. And so he’s (Elliot) made us better coaches and hopefully, we’ve helped him become a better player.”

Aday Mara, Michigan’s 7-foot-3 big man, also came out of the portal from UCLA, where he felt he “didn’t have the opportunity to show what I was able to do" during his two-year tenure.

All he did at Michigan was put up 26 points and 9 rebounds in the Final Four rout of Arizona before posting 8 points and 4 rebounds in the championship game.

“[The Michigan staff] did a great job putting players that were not selfish,” Mara said. "And I think now in the era we are, with the transfer portal, we've just got to learn and adapt as soon as possible to what we have and the different teams that we play.

“So I think just we've got to change, and we've got to learn every day so we can play together.”

UAB transfer Yaxel Lendeborg, arguably the best player in the Final Four, was yet another transfer who thrived under May at Michigan. He went for 13 points in the championship game despite knee and ankle injuries.

“Man, once we transferred in, I know especially for me, the whole University of Michigan welcomed me with open arms,” he said.

“Once we all got together, [the returning players] were super genuine with us the whole way. They tucked us in under their wing and showed us the Michigan way. They could have easily got hurt or something because the new guys were coming in, stealing their minutes, stealing their points, but they didn't care. All they cared about was winning, and look where it led us.”

That’s exactly the template Malone and his new staff should look at.

And they will need to.

Among 16 players on this year’s North Carolina roster, seven are already in the portal, per ESPN, two are graduating and Caleb Wilson is a projected top-5 NBA Draft pick.

That leaves six returnees, only three of which played more than five games, as of Wednesday morning.

Malone, who won an NBA championship with the Denver Nuggets, is entering college basketball at a time when it more and more resembles the pro game. He won’t have to do much in-person recruiting. He and Tanner and the staff will have to hit the portal hard, talk to agents and players and find those who are the right fit and want to do for North Carolina what the transfers at Michigan did.

“Every time I said no [to North Carolina], I was regretting that,” Malone said. "I think I’m making a mistake. Jobs like North Carolina do not come [often]….

“It’s now or never. I didn’t come here to be second best. I didn’t come here to lose in the first round of the ACC Tournament. I came here to win and and win at a big level and win at a high level.”

This article was originally published on Forbes.com

There's all sorts of thoughts about which direction the Detroit Lions should go with its first-round 2026 NFL draft pick at No. 17 overall.

In addition to pick No. 17, the Lions also own one day-two pick with their second-round selection (No. 50 overall). The Lions have seven other day-three picks.

While Detroit really needs to nail its first two picks, the Lions have more needs than just two position groups. ESPN took a stab at the Lions' three biggest needs in the draft:

OL, edge, CB. After struggling to adapt to new faces on the line last season and the release of veteran left tackle Taylor Decker, Detroit can benefit from drafting an O-lineman early. Adding an edge rusher to pair with Pro Bowl player Aidan Hutchinson would also be smart, as Al-Quadin Muhammad signed with Tampa Bay. Plus, the Lions' cornerback room was plagued by injuries the past couple of seasons. - Eric Woodyard, ESPN

The Lions drafting an offensive tackle replacement for Taylor Decker has been a popular mock. Another popular ESPN NFL analyst, Peter Schrager, thinks the Lions will draft one of the top guards in this class to fortify the interior of its offensive line.

Some combination of offensive tackle and EDGE feels like the most likely one-two combination of picks at No. 17 and No. 50 for the Lions.

The 2026 NFL draft gets underway in Pittsburgh on Thursday, April 23.

For more Lions coverage, follow us on X, @TheLionsWire, and give our Facebook page a like. Follow Josh on X, @JoshOnLions

This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: ESPN picks Detroit Lions' top three NFL draft needs

The 1-2 defeat to Bayern Munich at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium did more than just put Real Madrid on the back foot in the tie, it revealed a worrying trend that cannot be ignored ahead of the second leg.

On the surface, the result keeps Madrid alive, as a one-goal deficit is far from decisive, especially for a club with their European history.

But dig a little deeper, and a far more concerning picture emerges, one that has nothing to do with tactics or finishing, but with intensity.

What’s the story?

According to Mundo Deportivo, Real Madrid covered a total of 101.9 kilometres over the course of the match, while Bayern, in contrast, clocked an impressive 110.9 kilometres.

Simply put, a nine-kilometre gap at this level is alarming, to say the very least.

What makes this even more striking is the comparison with previous performances.

Against Manchester City earlier in the competition, Madrid showed a completely different physical profile, covering 113.7 kilometres in the first leg and 114.5 in the second.

Real Madrid could not match Bayern Munich’s intensity. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

That level of intensity is what carried them through, but it was nowhere to be seen against Bayern.

As per the outlet, on an individual basis, Federico Valverde once again led by example, covering 10.05 kilometres and topping Madrid’s charts.

However, as many as five players from the German side outperformed him, namely, Aleksandar Pavlovic (11.80 km), Joshua Kimmich (11.76 km), Michael Olise (10.66 km), Luis Díaz (10.39 km), and Josip Stanisic (10.09 km).

For Real Madrid, this raises serious questions heading into Munich for the second leg.

This is because overturning the deficit will demand a level of intensity that simply was not there in the first leg.

If that physical gap remains, history and reputation alone will not be enough to save them.

LOS ANGELES — The clock barely touched 16 seconds.

Sixteen.

That's how long it took for the Los Angeles Lakers to fracture.

Not their lead — they never had one. Not their playoff hopes — those were already solidified — but their landing spot is on life support.

No, what shattered in those 16 seconds was something quieter. Something uglier. Something that happens when a team that was flying just seven days ago suddenly can't breathe.

JJ Redick called a timeout. Pulled out his dry-erase board. And before he could draw a single line, Jarred Vanderbilt was in his face.

Right there. Near the free-throw line. Cameras rolling.

Austin Reaves — in street clothes, oblique shredded, powerless — stepped between them. Nate McMillan, too.

Assistant coaches. Players.

A human wall built to separate a coach and his forward, both of them red-faced, both of them saying things that would live on every highlight reel from here to the playoffs.

"It's nothing personal with him," Redick said. "Normal stuff from my end."

Normal.

For a team that was 15-2 in March.

For a team that was closing in on the third seed.

For a team that had the league's oldest superstar playing like the youngest — until he didn't.

Until Luka Dončić flew to Europe with a Grade 2 hamstring strain.

Until Austin Reaves joined him on the sideline with an oblique that refused to heal.

Until Marcus Smart limped.

Until Jaxson Hayes was scratched late, left foot soreness, a ghost scratch, the final domino.

And then LeBron James sat. Arthritic left foot. Rest.

The King, resting.

So here they were.

The Los Angeles Lakers. Pacific Division champions. Playoff-bound.

And absolutely, completely, thunderously lost.

Jay-Z said it best. Said it twenty years ago, and it still cuts like a blade: "The reason why we lead the pack, this is a marathon. You start off fast then you wheezing in the back."

A week ago, the Lakers were sprinting.

Fifteen wins in seventeen games, the third seed in their grasp.

Dončić threw dimes. James dunked on Father Time. Reaves hit shots that made grown men cry.

The whole city buzzed like a beehive kicked awake.

Now? Now they're wheezing.

The Lakers lost to Oklahoma City 123-87.

The Thunder — defending champs, machine-like, merciless — voraciously consumed, no, they executed the Lakers.

They hung 21 threes on a defense that looked like it had never met a closeout it liked.

Isaiah Joe hit six of them. Jared McCain added three more. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander cruised to 25 points and eight assists like he was taking a morning jog.

And the Lakers? The Lakers scored their lowest point total of the season –– 87 points.

Eighty-seven.

"We fought hard for basically 18 minutes," Redick admitted. "We were tied 42-42."

Then the wheels came off.

Then the Thunder finished the half on a 23-5 run. Then the Lakers scored just 22 points over the next 24 minutes of basketball.

22 points in half a game, that's not a slump. That's a disappearance.

Rui Hachimura scored 15 points. Drew Timme added 11 points. Adou Thiero — a rookie, career-high 10 points — played his heart out.

But heart doesn't matter when you're missing 94.6 points per game from your starting lineup.

Heart doesn't matter when your coach is arguing with his forward sixteen seconds into the second quarter.

Heart doesn't matter when the defending champions decide it's time to turn it up, and you have no answer.

But let's rewind to those first 16 seconds.

Second quarter. Fresh off the break. Vanderbilt checks in.

Sixteen seconds later — maybe two possessions, maybe less — Redick whistles the timeout.

He doesn't wait.

Doesn't deliberate.

He points to Dalton Knecht. Tells the second-year guard to replace Vanderbilt.

Vanderbilt doesn't walk to the bench. He walks to Redick.

Straight line. No hesitation.

And then the words start flying.

"I called a timeout to get him out of the game," Redick said. "And he reacted."

Reacted.

That word is doing a lot of heavy lifting and carrying a lot of weight.

What did Vanderbilt say?

No one's saying. Not on the record. Not in the locker room — because Vanderbilt dressed and left before reporters ever got in.

But the images tell the story. The pointing. The jawing.

The way Reaves — injured, unavailable, but still present — wedged himself between his coach and his teammate.

The way McMillan grabbed an arm.

The whole bench became a buffer zone.

"Normal interaction for me," Redick said.

Normal.

For a team that had just lost three straight. For a team that had lost two of those to the same opponent. For a team that watched its 15-2 March turn into a 0-3 April in the span of seven days.

Vanderbilt played five minutes, where he logged three points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal. He then sat the rest of the night and didn't see the floor again.

"Again, nothing personal with him," Redick said. "But we've got to scrap and claw. We've got to all be on the same page. We've got to be great teammates. We've got to all play hard."

Scrap. Claw. Same page. Great teammates. Play hard. That's five imperatives in one sentence. That's a coach begging for cohesion from a team that's coming apart at the seams.

Here's what you need to understand about JJ Redick: he doesn't wait.

He pulled Hachimura two minutes and 27 seconds into the first quarter.

Two minutes.

Hachimura had done something — didn't do his job, Redick said — and the hook came that fast.

In went Adou Thiero. Out went the veteran.

No sentiment. No seniority. Just performance.

"I called the early timeout because Rui didn't do his job," Redick said. "We've got to find nine guys that are all-in on us fighting."

Nine guys. Not fifteen. Not the whole roster. Nine.

He's looking for a playoff rotation. He's looking for the ones who won't break when the marathon gets hard.

Hachimura responded. Came back in. Finished with a team-high 15 points on 7-for-10 shooting.

Didn't talk to reporters afterward. Just dressed and left.

Some guys fight with words. Some guys fight with silence.

Vanderbilt? He fought with volume. And then he fought from the bench. And then he fought from the parking lot.

"The seeding part probably went out the window after the OKC game," Redick said. That's the closest he came to surrender.

That's the moment the coach looked at the standings — fourth place, tied with Denver but losing the tiebreaker, looking up at a Rockets team that won't stop winning — and said, quietly, we're not chasing anymore.

"We've got to prepare our team, our group that we're going to have available to play in the playoff series," Redick said.

Translation: This is who we are now. Stop asking about who's missing.

Timme didn't know he'd be a story tonight.

He'd been in the G League, working on his point guard skills with a coach named Zach, learning to bring the ball up. Learning to read defenses. Learning to be ready.

Then the phone rang.

"I haven't really been around too much," Timme said. "But you got to find ways to still compete and battle. That's all we can do."

Timme scored 11 points.

He ran pick-and-roll with Luke Kennard. He drew Lou Dort — one of the best defenders in basketball — picking him up full court.

He took it as a compliment.

"I'd say that's quite the compliment that they had him pick me up full court," Timme said. "Zach helped prepare me for this moment."

Kennard, meanwhile, keeps showing layers no one knew he had –– sixteen rebounds against Dallas, nine assists against OKC. A shooting guard playing point guard against the defending champions.

"Not bad," Kennard said. "Just trying to be poised. Under control."

Poised. Under control. Two words that described nothing about this game. Two words that felt like a prayer whispered in a burning building.

"The last few games we're trying to find something that'll work for us," Kennard said. "Carry it over to the playoffs."

Playoffs.

They're still saying that word. Still believing it.

Even as the Thunder dropped 123. Even as the sideline boiled over. Even as LeBron sat in street clothes, foot wrapped, watching his team wheeze.

Here's the thing about a marathon: it doesn't care how fast you started.

It doesn't care about your 15-2 March. Doesn't care about your third-seed aspirations. Doesn't care about your Luka or your Austin or your Marcus or your Jaxson or your LeBron.

The marathon only cares who's still standing at mile 26.

Right now, the Lakers are standing. Barely. But standing.

They have three games left. Golden State. Phoenix. Utah.

Three chances to find those nine guys Redick keeps talking about. Three chances to remember how to play defense. Three chances to stop the bleeding before the playoffs swallow them whole.

Los Angeles will want to win two of the next three to put themselves in a good position.

Good position. Not great. Not ideal. Not what the Lakers dreamed about a week ago.

Just good enough.

LeBron will be back. Probably.

Marcus Smart might return. Maybe.

But Luka is in Europe. Reaves is out for the regular season. Hayes is day-to-day.

And the Thunder just reminded everyone what a real championship contender looks like.

They are a machine. They are what every team aspires to be.

The Lakers aspired to that a week ago. Before the injuries. Before the quarrel. Before the wheezing started.

Now they're just trying to finish.

Not first. Not third. Just finish.

Because in a marathon, that's all that matters at the end.

You start off fast, then you wheezing in the back.

The Lakers are wheezing, but they're still running.

MONACO (AP) — Former No. 1 Daniil Medvedev lost his temper, smashed his racket on the red clay court seven successive times, and then deposited the mangled frame in a trash bin midway through a 6-0, 6-0 loss to Matteo Berrettini at the Monte Carlo Masters on Wednesday.

Medvedev, who is currently ranked 10th, received a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct and will also likely be hit with a hefty fine for his actions early in the second set.

Medvedev was already struggling when he landed a forehand in the net to drop his opening service game of the second set and fall behind 2-0 and he slammed his racket near the baseline. Then he picked the racket up and threw it toward a tarp at the end of the court.

Still not through, Medvedev then continually picked his frame up and kept on smashing it until it was destroyed enough to fit through an opening in a courtside trash can as the crowd sarcastically cheered him on.

Medvedev, who won the U.S. Open in 2021, lost the match in 49 minutes. He had five double-faults to Berrettini’s none; put only 36% of his first serves in play to Berrettini’s 65%; and won only 17 of the 67 points.

It was quite a turnaround from the previous three meetings between the players — which were all won by Medvedev.

According to statistics provider Opta, Berrettini became only the fifth player since the ATP Rankings started in 1973 to defeat a top-10 opponent 6-0, 6-0 — a score otherwise known as a double bagel — with the last time it happened being a decade ago when David Goffin routed Tomas Berdych at the Italian Open.

“I wouldn’t expect to win like that and it doesn’t happen that often,” Berrettini said.

Medvedev was playing his first match on clay this year, having recently beaten top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz to reach a final on hard courts in Indian Wells, California.

Berrettini, a Wimbledon finalist in 2021 who has struggled with injuries in recent years, is ranked 90th. The Italian received a wild card invitation for Monte Carlo.

“It was definitely one of the best performances of my life,” Berrettini said. “I think I missed three shots in the whole match.”

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis