The Brooklyn Nets are adding to their roster, signing point guard Killian Hayes to a one-year deal.

Hayes, who turns 23 years old today, was the No. 7 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, but his tenure with the franchise wasn’t very successful.

He played in just 26 games for the Pistons in his first season, failing to convince the team that he could be the point guard of the future. The Pistons then drafted Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 pick the following year, and that sent Hayes’ career on a difficult path.

While Hayes still had chances to shine for the Pistons, it was clear that he was not going to be part of Detroit’s long-term plans. In the middle of this past season, the Pistons decided to cut ties early and waive him.

So, why are the Nets taking a shot on him? But perhaps the more appropriate question should be “why not?”

The Nets are a team not focused as much on results this season as much as development, and Hayes is a player who could use some developing. Hayes had enough potential to be a top-10 pick just four years ago, and he’s young enough to where he can still learn and grow in the NBA.

The move holds very little risk for the Nets, who could still benefit if Hayes begins to look more like the lottery pick he was when he was coming into the league. Worst case scenario? Hayes doesn’t play and the Nets are wasting a roster spot. If he plays and he continues to be a subpar player, then the Nets were going to be bad anyway.

Either way, the Nets only have something to gain with this move, making it a positive one.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo isn’t the only member of the Milwaukee Bucks family who’ll play a big part in the Paris Olympics.

Johnny Watson, the Bucks’ executive producer of broadcast and live events, will, too.

Watson and Antetokounmpo will both help lead teams — just in their own ways. Antetokounmpo will be representing his home country of Greece from the court, and Watson will be courtside as a venue producer for all men’s and women’s basketball games.

“It’s one of the most prominent sporting entertainment in the world,” Watson said. “It’s a huge deal. I’m honored.”

Watson will be show-calling, aka producing, the basketball games’ in-arena presentations with videos, graphics, music, special effects, lighting, on-court entertainment and national anthems. To pull this off, he’ll be working with a crew of at least 25 people per game who’ve come from around the world, including France, Finland, Australia, Canada and the U.S.

While this may sound like a lot, Watson’s done it before. He worked the men’s basketball games and the women’s basketball medal rounds for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. Plus, the FIBA Basketball World Cup in China in 2019 and in Indonesia in 2023.

Watson said it’s nearly the same as what he does for Bucks games at Fiserv Forum. And, internationally with his team on occasion, like when the Bucks played in London in 2015 and Abu Dhabi in 2022.

Here’s a glimpse into Watson’s Olympic journey, from planning meetings that began months ago to what a day in his life will look like during the Games.

“It’s obviously an honor to be here, represent Milwaukee, the Bucks, my family,” Watson said. “It’s pretty special to be a part of it.”

From months of meetings to what game days will look like

About six months ago, Watson started having meetings for the Olympics, which ramped up as the Games got closer. Those meetings focused on processes, staffing, logistics and more, he said. Once that was solidified, planning the programs, what the shows will look like, commenced.

Watson arrived in Paris in mid-July and took an hour train ride to Lille, where the group phases will take place. He’ll head to Paris proper for the medal rounds and stay there through Aug. 13.

There will be four basketball games a day. Watson will arrive about two hours before the first for meetings and to rehearse, step-by-step, what he and his team — including talent, music DJs and graphic operators — will be doing during the game.

“Then, the doors open and you go and you start,” he said.

When the game ends, Watson and his crew will meet and rehearse for the next one.

“It makes for a really long day, but it’s the Olympics,” Watson said. “It’s the pinnacle of sport.”

Watson will be reunited with fellow Bucks representative Giannis Antetokounmpo when Greece takes on Canada Saturday. Antetokounmpo helped lead his home country into its first Games in men’s basketball since 2008 and was a flag bearer for the opening ceremonies.

Heading into his 13th season with the Bucks, Watson’s been with the organization since B.A., before Antetokounmpo.

“To see his growth and know his story now of where he came from and how much it means to him to be a part of the Olympics is pretty, pretty special,” Watson said. “I’m really excited to obviously see him and see some of the other Bucks staff here, too.”

With this being Watson’s first time in Paris, he’s carved out time to explore before heading back home. He’s planning to check out the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and the Champs-Élysées.

The Bucks’ Johnny Watson will be headed to the US Open in New York next

As if the Olympics weren’t enough for one summer, Watson will be off to the US Open in New York next month to be a stadium director.

As a former All-American tennis player at Coe College with numerous accolades in the sport, this is a “bucket list lifelong dream” for him.

Watson has attended the U.S. Open as a fan with his dad — who got Watson into tennis when he was 7 — around six times.

Watson helped out with the event for the first time in 2022. He mainly co-managed content for the screens at the Flushing Meadows grounds. His role this time around will be more what he does with the Bucks, he said — programming shows and making them happen.

“My main priority is the (Bucks), but the fact that they look at this as professional development, something I’m very passionate about …” Watson said. “The fact that they give me the opportunity to do this or they tell me it’s OK to do these things in the summer and other times, it means a lot to me.”

MINNEAPOLIS — The lights are on, and the ink is flowing inside Ink Lab in Uptown Minneapolis. It’s the first day back for artists after someone intentionally set several garbage fires.

“Back in the shop we got here this morning and power cleaned,” said Erica Bessler on Friday.

David Dettloff, who owns Ink Lab, was finally able to watch the surveillance footage that shows exactly what happened early Monday morning.

In the video, you see a man walk up to a dumpster and look inside before setting it on fire.  You can see the large flames quickly spread, scaling up the building and melting everything in its way.

“What mostly struck me is how casually this guy is coming back here and lighting a fire,” said Dettloff. “It’s that easy to destroy a building and mess with a bunch of people’s lives.”

The fire left six people without a home, shut down businesses for days, and put one man behind bars.

Five trash fires were set by the same man, according to a report by the Minneapolis Fire Department.

Rose Opstad lived in the building. We caught up with her as she gathered her belongings. Her home was deemed uninhabitable.

“It was incredibly intense very scary,” Opstad recalled. “All I was faced with was a hallway full of smoke and flames coming through the door.”

Adding fuel to the frustration of the folks who own shops there: An emergency homeless shelter could move in right across the street.

InkLab’s owner worries a proposed shelter directly from his Lake Street shop could also mess with people’s lives.

“If people like me and those who run businesses along this block keep fighting to make this area better have nice retail stores and decent restaurants for people to visit, we can keep Uptown an exciting environment,” he said.

Dozens shared his sentiment at a meeting earlier this month.

“It doesn’t make a lot of sense to put an emergency shelter in the middle of a retail space, it’s not like we’d do that in the Mall of America,” said one neighbor.

The developer behind the plan said it “will not be detrimental to or endanger the public health, safety, comfort or general welfare.”

Another planning commission hearing is set for mid-August.

Until then business owners in this buzzing neighborhood, will be left with some burning questions.