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
Takeaways, observations from Michigan State’s loss at Boston College
Michigan State had an upset win on the road within reach for the second time in four games.
The Spartans (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) couldn’t finish this time while suffering a 23-19 loss at Boston College (3-1, 1-0 ACC) on Saturday night at Alumni Stadium.
Here are quick takeaways and observations from the game:
* Warts and all, this team continues to show grit. The offense turned to option No. 4 at right guard to start the game while a redshirt freshman walk-on receiver logged first-quarter snaps. Injuries have depleted the Spartans at key positions and they keep making brutal, self-inflicted errors but don’t fold. It was a game they definitely could have won but didn’t deserve to due to back-breaking mistakes.
Two turnovers on the first two touches of the second half leading to 10 points in 13 seconds for Boston College didn’t snap the Spartans. Backed up at the 2-yard line, they turned in their longest drive of the season to reclaim the lead late in the fourth quarter. The Eagles go back in front with less than 90 seconds to play, Michigan State quickly moves within field goal range.
The difference was the final mistake couldn’t be overcome. Aidan Chiles was picked off in the end zone with 36 seconds left, the Eagles ran out the clock and coach Jonathan Smith suffered his first loss leading the Spartans. What could have been a 4-0 start that turned heads going into a brutal stretch starting against Ohio State and at Oregon was washed away on a rainy night on the road.
* It continues to be very clear what Michigan State has in Chiles – a game-changing talent who also looks like he just turned 19. The dazzling plays weren’t enough to overcome critical errors in his fourth career start. Chiles was elusive in the open field with his legs while moving the chains in key spots but also threw a trio of interceptions. Th first two were off target for tight end Jack Velling and the third was a poor decision.
After getting the ball back with 1:28 to play, Chiles was 3-for-3 with passes of 6, 21 and 12 yards to Velling. The Spartans were at the Boston College 36 with 42 seconds left, two timeouts and within range for kicker Jonathan Kim, who was already 4-for-4 on the night. They were moving the ball and heaving into double coverage at Montorie Foster after escaping pressure was obviously not the right decision. Chiles finished 17-for-35 for 241 yards, zero touchdown passes, three picks and ran for 57 yards and a score. He continues to show growth and has tremendous talent but must do a better job taking care of the ball after seven interceptions and a fumble already this fall.
* Behind a makeshift offensive line, an underwhelming run game struggled again. Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams led the team with 15 carries for 61 yards and 38 of those came in the fourth quarter, including 19 on a huge third-and-15 pickup. Five of Nathan Carter’s nine rushes were for zero or negative yards while frequently ambushed by defenders in the backfield. With a young quarterback on the road and a depleted group of receivers, the run game needed to show up consistently but didn’t.
* With the top two right guards – Kristian Phillips and Gavin Broscious – both out due to season-ending injuries, the Spartans went with a shakeup that didn’t include Dallas Fincher, who finished at the spot against Prairie View A&M last week. Starting left tackle Brandon Baldwin moved to right guard and was replaced by redshirt freshman Stanton Ramil, who was already pushing for the starting role. Luke Newman remained at left guard and Tanner Miller at center. It wasn’t a great night for the offensive line, which didn’t generate enough movement in the run game and had protection issues but stuck with its starting five.
* When one of three starting receivers is a redshirt freshman with zero career catches, you have a problem. Next up at the spot and on the field in the first quarter was a second-year walk-on with only five offensive snaps in a blowout against an FCS program. That sums up the depth chart the Spartans took to Boston.
Starters Jaron Glover and Nick Marsh were both out, along with Antonio Gates Jr. while Alante Brown missed his third straight game. Down four of the top five or six receivers on the roster led to Jaelen Smith getting the start and walk-on Jack Yanachik playing first-quarter snaps.
Despite the absences, opportunities were there in the pass game the Spartans couldn’t capitalize on. Chiles missed a pair of deep shots early to Foster before connecting on a third to set up the first touchdown. He overshot the fifth-year senior again on what would have been an easy touchdown in the third quarter before a field goal. Velling was a frequent target but missed throws prevented a larger impact. Foster led the team with 87 yards on four catches while Velling had six for 77 and Aziah Johnson three for 59 in his first career start.
* We’ll see how Michigan State’s defense holds up against Ohio State next week but the change so far under coordinator Joe Rossi has been notable. The Spartans got pushed around a bit early but did more than enough to win the game. They limited Boston College to 292 yards and 2-for-4 in the red zone while coming up with huge stops deep, both after a sudden change and at the end of a drive. Linebacker Jordan Hall’s stuff of quarterback Thomas Castellanos on fourth-and-goal from the 1 early in the fourth quarter was huge but still not enough.
The front seven remains a deep rotation as Khris Bogle continues to shine and fellow ends Quindarius Dunnigan and Anthony Jones and linebacker Jordan Turner all had a sack on Saturday while limiting Castellanos on the ground. Cornerback Charles Brantley had another strong performance while continually throwing around all of his generously-listed 170 pounds to make open-field tackles and another pass break-up. Castellano’s game-winning 42-yard touchdown throw to Logan Bond came as Angelo Grose slipped in coverage for the only pass play of at least 30 yards for the Eagles.
* Michigan State outclassed Boston College on special teams but one mistake was a game changer. Lynch-Adams took over as the deep man on kickoff returns after Johnson made a pair of ill-advised decisions to take the ball out of the end zone at Maryland, then made the same mistake himself. This one was more costly and came with Michigan State looking to add to its lead to start the second half.
Lynch-Adams brought it out from a yard deep and was drilled, resulting in a fumble Boston College recovered at the 5. The Spartans held the Eagles to a field goal but it was still a free three points before Chiles threw a pick on the next snap.
Kim was arguably Michigan State’s player of the game, finishing 4-for-4 on field goals, including a 51-yarder amid the elements late in the first half. A fifth attempt could have tied the game in the final seconds but he never got a chance. Ryan Eckley punted only twice with kicks of 50 and 48 yards, including one under intense pressure in the end zone.
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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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