YouTube Gold: “He Wanted To Go Guard Him On The Bench”

Former Bulls GM Jerry Krause has never fully gotten the credit he deserved for building the Chicago Bulls into the second-greatest dynasty in basketball, behind only the Boston Celtics of the Bill Russell era, and it’s partly his own fault.

He was indeed a brilliant GM, but he was also an insecure man who wanted to make sure he got credit for his work. Champions, he insisted, were built by the front office, not the players. There’s truth to that, but it offended his players, notably Jordan, who derisively called Krause Crumbs, because he saw a bit of breakfast on Krause’s shirt one day.

But while Krause got very lucky when he got Jordan, since Houston and Portland both took big men in the 1984 draft, he built around his immense talent brilliantly.

Perhaps the greatest example of this was when Chicago traded for Scottie Pippen in the 1987 Draft, giving up Olden Polynice and some future draft picks.

Pippen, if you didn’t know, came out of Central Arkansas, and while he was the #5 pick, he was the furthest thing from a sure bet. How could you know? How could you be sure that a guy who spent four years off the radar at a minor NAIA school would turn out, that he could play at the NBA level and do so brilliantly?

Krause knew, and he moved decisively to get him. And in so doing, he created one of the most devastating pairs of defenders in the history of basketball.

Jordan was obviously the better player, but Pippen’s athleticism was not far behind, and when they decided that something wasn’t happening, well, it just didn’t happen.

This video starts with what they did to Toni Kukoc in the Barcelona Olympics, and goes on to show that these guys were nearly impossible to attack when they were fully engaged. And that was the vast majority of the time.

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Todd Monken says Browns' QBs threw "embarrassing" interceptions at OTAs

Browns quarterback Todd Monken was not happy about interceptions he saw on the practice field during Organized Team Activities on Wednesday.

Monken said after practice that it should be easy for quarterbacks to find open receivers, given that OTAs don't include any pass rush, and he wasn't pleased that his quarterbacks were throwing interceptions anyway.

“We threw interceptions in 7-on-7 for God’s sakes. Who does that? There’s no pass rush. It was embarrassing,” Monken said.

Monken did not say which quarterbacks had thrown embarrassing interceptions. Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders are competing for the starting job, while Dillion Gabriel and rookie Taylen Green are taking backup reps.

As for Watson and Sanders, Monken wouldn't say which quarterback is ahead in the competition at this point. Monken has said he hopes to know who his starting quarterback is by the end of the spring.

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Contract details for Patriots draft pick Karon Prunty

FOXBOROUGH, MA - MAY 09: Karon Prunty #21 of the New England Patriots during New England Patriots rookie camp on May 9, 2026, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

After making two trades up the board within their first selections in the 2026 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots found themselves with a 75-pick hole between the late third and early fifth round. They closed said hole by selecting Wake Forest cornerback Karon Prunty 171st overall.

Shortly thereafter, Prunty became the first of the team’s draft picks to sign his rookie contract. He put his signature under a four-year deal worth just under $4.81 million. Here is how it breaks down in detail.

CB Karon Prunty: Contract details

Base value: $4,807,348
Maximum value: TBD

Guarantees: $427,348
Signing bonus: $427,348

2026 (age 24):
Base salary: $885,000
Signing bonus: $106,837
Salary cap hit: $991,837

2027 (age 25):
Base salary: $1,050,000
Signing bonus: $106,837
Salary cap hit: $1,156,837

2028 (age 26):
Base salary: $1,165,000
Signing bonus: $106,837
Salary cap hit: $1,271,837

2029 (age 27):
Base salary: $1,280,000
Signing bonus: $106,837
Salary cap hit: $1,386,837

There are no surprises with Prunty’s deal; this is a standard contract for a rookie selected at this stage of the draft. Of course, as a fifth-round pick, his pact carries a lower overall and annual value than that of the player selected right before him, third-round tight end Eli Raridon.

The monetary investment is not the only difference between those two particular deals. Unlike Raridon, for example, Prunty does not make the Top-51 list at the moment. This means that, unless 12 higher-compensated players get the axe, he will hit the Patriots’ Books with only a fraction of his in-season cap hit during the offseason: only his fully-guaranteed $106,837 signing bonus proration is currently counted.

As for the deal as whole, it is pretty straight forward. His salaries include no guarantees, and his $427,348 signing bonus alone wouldn’t keep the team from releasing him this year or at any point thereafter.

Prunty also is eligible for a Year 4 pay bump under the league’s performance escalator program. His 2029 salary (and, by extension, cap hit) might end up increasing depending on his playing time and output over his first three seasons in the league.

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Rockets 2025-2026 season in review: Fred VanVleet

HOUSTON, TX - MARCH 31: Fred VanVleet #5 of the Houston Rockets looks on during the game against the New York Knicks on March 31, 2026 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Logan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images

Yes, we know that Fred VanVleet didn’t play for the Houston Rockets this season. But given that GM Rafael Stone stayed quiet at the NBA Trade Deadline and cited VanVleet’s absence for why team management wasn’t making any moves to improve, which became a huge part of this season’s narrative, we wanted to include FVV here in our recaps.

So how important is VanVleet? We do know he was part of the Rockets culture change, teaming with now-Sun Dillon Brooks to add a veteran presence to the Houston locker room and a steady hand on the court. That was pretty dang important. But I think we can all agree that he’s probably not quite as important as Ime Udoka and Stone want us to believe (you know, for job security and all).

This is a guy who was coming off of a year in which he averaged 14.1 points and 5.6 assists, but he also shot just 37.8 percent from the field and 34.5 percent from deep on high volume (7.7 three attempts per game). There were nights when VanVleet downright shot the Rockets out of a game. Houston had more than enough of that this season. What would adding another inconsistent shooter have done? Yes, Houston really needed his steady hand, and yes, quality true point guard depth behind FVV was also an issue — but that job of securing depth by definition falls on Stone and Udoka. It’s their resonsibility to make sure the Rockets can weather such storms and that one injury doesn’t completely derail a season. And not only did they not do it, they came to us and told us they intentionally did not do it. Then tried to gaslight us into thinking it was all for the best.

The Kevin Durant window is limited. The Rockets gave up real player assets for KD. If Houston were ready to punt a full year just because of a VanVleet injury, it made no sense to go after KD, because you’re basically admitting that your team isn’t ready. If they’re not ready, it made more sense to take the long game and not trade for a limited-window Durant. But they made the move, signifying to the league and to the players that they thought they were going to make a real push. Then decided against it and told us that not making a push was the real plan all along. It honestly feels a little bit toxic.

Will I be happy to have VanVleet back? Yes, absolutely. Do I think he solves Houston’s issues? No, I do not. This team needs more shooters, more backcourt playmakers, and better locker room chemistry. FVV helps with the playmaking and the locker room issues (though certainly doesn’t solve them), but he’s no one’s answer to three-point shooting woes at this stage of his career.

He’s also 32 years old and coming off of a major surgery. Who knows how he looks when he comes back or how much time he’ll need to round into form. It’s possible he never does return to form. If so, the Rockets have some serious franchise-direction pivoting to discuss. Either way, they need more than VanVleet alone can provide. But hey, if he never does quite return to form, at least Stone and Udoka still have their built-in excuse.

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Packers sign Marlon Jones, undrafted cornerback who battled cancer in college

The Packers are bringing in an undafted rookie with a back story that makes him easy to root for.

Marlon Jones, a cornerback from Vanderbilt who missed the 2024 season while batting cancer, is signing with the Packers, according to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports.

Jones began his college career at Eastern Washington and was one of the best cornerbacks in the FCS before deciding to step up to a higher level of competition and transfer to Vanderbilt. But the day before he was going to move to Nashville in the spring of 2024, he received a diagnosis of stage 3 Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

That caused him to miss the 2024 season, but by 2025 he was in full remission and cleared to play. Although he didn't make a big impact at Vanderbilt last year, he showed signs that with enough time to recover from the ordeal that cancer treatments put his body through, he may be able to play in the NFL.

Jones is a long shot to make the Packers' regular-season roster, but he'll be given that shot, two years after a diagnosis that forced him to put football on hold.

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49ers News: One week closer

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JANUARY 17: San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch interacts with Ricky Pearsall #1 prior to an NFL divisional playoff football game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on January 17, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Could 49ers’ Week 1 be one of the better prime-time games of the year?
“With the game in Australia and it being the first week, something tells me it might be a bit of a mixed bag. Will it be good? Probably. The No. 3 prime-time game of the year? I doubt it. I’m expecting a lot of mistakes and clumsy plays from both teams as they play their first game of the season. Bergman did rank some games simply on the vibes of teams, and the 49ers/Rams deliver on that. Like most Week 1 games, I think you’ll see a lot of things that need fixing rather than defining moments—for both teams.”

49ers disaster: ‘Too many red flags’ have writer predicting rough 2026 season
“The 49ers might be expecting too much from Mike Evans, the soon-to-be 33-year-old receiver who missed nine games due to injury during his final season with the Bucs,” Manzano wrote. “As for another concern, wide receivers Christian Kirk and Ricky Pearsall have struggled to stay healthy. 

“This is an aging roster that has dealt with several injuries in recent seasons. Now, San Francisco has to travel 38,100 miles in 2026 and starts the season with a 15-hour flight to Australia to face the hated Rams. Too many red flags here.”

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49ers News: Another Sunday without NFL football

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 11: Brock Purdy #13 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after his team's 23-19 win against the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Lincoln Financial Field on January 11, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) | Getty Images

How the NFL came up with a plan to keep 49ers from becoming jet-lagged zombies in 2026 (paywall)
“It’s a lot of air miles,” North said. “We fully recognize that. Coach (Shanahan) wasn’t shy about his concerns. We spoke with John Lynch. We spoke with Al Guido. We were well aware of where they were hoping to land. Did they get everything they wanted? Probably not. But were we comfortable with where we landed? We were.”

Fox Sports predicts 49ers as NFC’s top team in 2026
“As for the seeding order, the NFC West is about as hard to predict as can be,” McKenna wrote. “The 49ers get the edge because they have a weak schedule and they put together a solid free-agency class, which includes veteran receiver Mike Evans. But the NFC’s top seed could just as easily be the Rams or Seahawks (again).”

49ers have two Thursday games, but only one on three-day rest—this could change
“And this is why you see the 49ers sitting at five games, or some teams at six. The NFL doesn’t want to max out a team’s prime-time schedule, and said team is having a train wreck of a season. On the flip side, they also don’t want to take a team that has things locked up in Week 15 and subsequently benching starters for the game.”

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