According to ESPN, Boston has emerged as a leading destination in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes. No deal is on the table (that we know of), but the mere possibility might raise a few concerns.
Boston, MA
Here’s why the Massachusetts snow forecast changed
BOSTON – From the beginning, the meteorologists at WBZ-TV in Boston had a bad feeling about the snow storm heading to Massachusetts Tuesday. The snowfall predictions took a major turn downwards from Sunday to Monday and many people want to know why.
Snow predictions early discussions
Here’s an example of what we were talking about behind the scenes over the weekend while trying to develop an accurate forecast of snowfall totals.
Saturday 1:21 p.m.
Text from Eric Fisher to me: “I dunno, just feels like a weird headfake storm to me”
Sunday 4:05 p.m.
Text from Eric Fisher to me: “Still feeling kind of leery of a late shift south”
Monday 12:47 a.m. on WBZ-TV News after the Super Bowl
Eric talking to David Wade and Lisa Hughes: “I’m a little worried it’s going to slip farther south; we will watch the trends tomorrow”
Granted some of these conversations were private, but we did try to caution our viewers about the uncertainty with this particular storm. Trust me, I know, in the end, many folks aren’t hanging on every word that is said on TV and most are just waiting for the snow forecast map.
Winter storms are like snowflakes, no two are exactly alike. This is a big part of what makes forecasting in New England so intriguing. You can literally do this job your entire life (see Barry Burbank, well over 40 years), and still have sleepless nights wondering if the atmosphere will behave as you predicted.
Contrary to popular belief, meteorologists don’t just go outside and stick their fingers in the air to determine the forecast. We rely on very complex weather models. These models are run on giant supercomputers capable of churning out quadrillions of calculations per second. Seriously! That’s 15 zeros!
Despite this insane amount of technology, in the end, the weather is still somewhat unpredictable. There are just too many moving parts. We are light years better at forecasting now than we were 10, 20, 30 years ago, but still far from perfect. We would love to be able to accurately predict how much snow your town is going to get four days in advance but that just isn’t possible. This is, after all, still a FORECAST. Things will change. Sometimes dramatically so.
What happened to the snow forecast in Boston
Over the weekend, you likely started seeing snowfall forecast maps popping up here, there and everywhere. By Sunday, most of the model guidance seemed to be converging on a storm track that would produce a widespread 6-to-12″ of snow across southern New England. However, with this storm, there was a very fine line between getting a whole bunch of snow and getting nothing. We knew that there would be some very intense snow bands that would produce 1-to-3″ per hour. If your town ended up underneath this banding, you were in for an intense 3-6 hours of snow. Just a few miles to the north, flurries.
Minor shift, major change in snow predictions
By Sunday night, and more so Monday morning, there was a minor shift in the model output. It appeared that the center of the storm may pass about 50 miles farther south that what was originally forecast. For a storm system several hundred miles across, 50 miles isn’t much. BUT, if those 50 miles just happen to be right over Massachusetts a minor shift becomes a MAJOR story. Shifting the highest snowfall totals (8-12″) 50 miles southward had a major impact of hundreds of thousands of people. For reference…50 miles (as the crow flies) in Massachusetts is like going from Lawrence to Plymouth or Boston to Falmouth.
So, much to the disappointment of some, and the delight of others, we made a significant change to our snowfall forecast Monday afternoon. Basically, everything was shifted about 25-50 miles south.
Unfortunately, many towns, schools and businesses had already chosen to make a decision to close on Tuesday, nearly 24 hours prior to the first flakes. I get it, you want to give folks as much notice as possible to find babysitters, change plans etc. Sure, occasionally you get a multi-day mega-blizzard, and the call is an easy one. Most of the time, however, making those calls a full day in advance is a dangerous proposition and NOT one that any meteorologist would recommend.
Part of me longs for the old days, when we would all wake up at 5 a.m. and flip on WBZ NewsRadio 1030 to hear whether school was canceled or not. Strange that back then, when communication was much more rudimentary, we waited until the last minute to make those decisions. Whereas now, when we can get the word out in seconds via text, robocall, social media etc, we make the calls way sooner.
At the end of nearly every blog I write, I urge everyone to stay tuned to updated forecasts. That isn’t just a throwaway line, we really mean it!
The atmosphere is a crazy place. A thunderstorm unexpectedly forming in Texas on Monday could start a chain reaction that leads to massive changes to Boston’s weather a few days later.
We know and respect that you all have busy lives with kids to care for and businesses to run. Our goal is to provide you with the most accurate information possible and, just as important, keeping you updated when changes occur.
Concern numero uno is obvious. Giannis is one of the handful of players capable of altering the championship picture by himself. Pairing him with Jayson Tatum would create an impressive combination of size, athleticism, versatility, and star power. The question is whether Brad Stevens and the Celtics can actually pull it off without creating a new set of problems for themselves.
Boston’s path to Giannis is narrower than it first appears. The Celtics would almost certainly need to move Jaylen Brown, either directly to Milwaukee or through a third team. Reports indicate Brown has little interest in joining the Bucks (in paraphrase: “Milwaukee?! Yuck!”), which complicates matters further. We start moving from a blockbuster trade to a three-team puzzle involving contracts, draft compensation, and competing agendas.
Even if Boston finds a way through that maze, there’s no guarantee the resulting team will succeed.
Giannis may be a better asset than Brown, but championships are not won by comparing players one-for-one. They’re won by building complete teams (case in point: YOUR WORLD CHAMPION NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS ).
Brown averaged more than 28 points per game last season while defending multiple positions. He can create his own offense, punish smaller defenders, and absorb primary scoring responsibilities when Tatum is unavailable (as Tatum was for most of last season, recovering from a torn Achilles). Replacing him with Giannis raises Boston’s ceiling, perhaps, but also changes the structure of the roster.
The Celtics have spent years building an ecosystem around two star wings. Remove one and the supporting cast suddenly becomes more important, which means Stevens would have many more decisions to make before the start of training camp.
What catches me up is, if the Bucks believed that Giannis has more great years ahead of him, would they so quickly offload him to a conference rival? Might he actually be a distressed asset?
Giannis will turn 32 this season. He has generally been durable over his career but has dealt with increasing lower-body issues (especially calves and knees) in recent years, leading to more missed time. To wit:
• 2022–23: 63 GP / 19 missed
• 2023–24: 73 GP / 9 missed
• 2024–25: 67 GP / 15 missed
• 2025–26: 36 GP / 46 missed
Wouldn’t that just be the worst if the Celts parted with Brown to get him, and then Giannis missed extended time due to injury? Like, the absolute worst? (Insert diabolical laughter.)
A healthy Tatum-Giannis pairing would present unique challenges for New York. The Knicks would need to defend relentless downhill pressure while also containing one of the league’s best bucket creators. But, given their depth, New York may be better equipped than most teams to handle it.
So if the Celtics’ pursuit of Giannis causes an initial flutter of worry, you can let that just drift on by. The scenario only noses toward Red Alert if Boston nabs him while somehow also acquiring a guard who makes up for what they’d lose with Brown’s departure.
But wait! This just in: Chris Haynes has pushed back on the idea that a Giannis Antetokounmpo-to-Boston deal is close. He writes that Boston does not appear to be a promising destination and suggested the situation could extend into July. Additionally, Marc Stein reported that the Celtics are frustrated by speculation involving Jaylen Brown, while Brian Windhorst said Brown has not been formally offered in a trade. So, to quote the great William Goldman (also a Knicks fan), “Nobody knows anything.”
It’s worth noting that the Miami Heat are also reportedly in the mix. We’ve heard that the lack of income tax is alluring to the Greek Freak. Plus Florida offers sunny, warm weather, which is not a defining feature of Wisconsin. In the end, though, joining Boston would allow Giannis to keep all his favorite green-themed items in his wardrobe, and shouldn’t looking good be a priority, too?
BOSTON — The Boston Bruins said Thursday they are retiring Patrice Bergeron’s No. 37 as part of a ceremony next season.
The date will be shared later, following the NHL schedule release that is expected next month.
Bergeron is set to join fellow 2011 Stanley Cup champion Zdeno Chara with his number in the rafters. Bergeron, when it happens, will be the 14th player to have his number retired by the storied franchise.
He spent his entire 19-year career in the league with the Bruins, playing 1,464 games counting the regular season and playoffs. That included the title run in 2011 and more trips to the final in ’13 and ’19.
“Patrice was the kind of rare, generational talent that every team wanted,” owner Jeremy Jacobs said in a statement. “He was a deftly skilled playmaker and the undeniable greatest defensive forward in the NHL’s history. But it was the leadership he provided on the ice and in the locker room that made him truly stand apart and an all-time legend of the Boston Bruins.”
Bergeron succeeded Chara as captain in 2020 and served three seasons in that role before retiring. He called this an honor that is difficult to put into words.
“When I arrived in Boston as an 18-year-old, I could never have imagined receiving this recognition one day,” Bergeron said. “I have always believed that any success I had was only possible because of the people around me. I was fortunate to play alongside incredible teammates, learn from outstanding coaches and staff and be supported by an organization that believed in me from the very beginning.”
Craig Ferguson set out on foot from Los Angeles with a remarkable goal: to walk 3,500 miles across America. It took him 109 days.
Last week, I had the privilege of joining him for his final steps into Boston. In those first moments after completing his journey, I asked him what the experience had been like. Without hesitation, he called it the hardest thing he had ever done.
What began as a mission to raise money for SAMH, a Scottish charity that provides mental health and social care support, became something far greater. Along the way, Craig inspired thousands of people and helped raise more than $1 million. His arrival in Boston also came amid the excitement surrounding Scotland’s appearance in the World Cup, giving his home country even more reason to celebrate.
Craig’s commitment to mental health advocacy is perhaps best expressed in his own words: “Mental health doesn’t care who you are or where you’re from. It can meet you along the road, sometimes when you least expect it.”
Those words resonate deeply with me. I was raised by a mother who faced significant mental health challenges, and I know firsthand how important support systems can be for individuals and families. Organizations like SAMH provide hope when people need it most. Equally important is continuing to normalize conversations about mental health and recognizing that it is a health issue that touches every community and every walk of life.
There are countless routes Craig could have taken and many cities where he could have chosen to conclude this extraordinary journey. The fact that he finished in Boston is something we should be proud of.
Boston has always been a city defined by resilience, compassion, and perseverance. Those qualities are why “Boston Strong” means so much to so many people. Craig Ferguson may be Scottish by birth, but through his determination, his generosity, and his commitment to helping others, he has embodied that spirit.
As we welcome him to our beautiful and sports-loving city, we thank him for reminding us that even the longest journeys begin with a single step, and that no one should have to walk through life’s struggles alone.
Craig Ferguson is Boston Strong.
Anne Brensley is the Republican-endorsed candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.
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