There are few things we Boston sports fans love more than a hometown hero story. The latest report coming out of the Boston Celtics camp indicates that general manager Brad Stevens and the Celtics front office have taken particular interest in one Massachusetts-born prospect. 

Alex Karaban is a legendary University of Connecticut player in his own right. The 6-foot-7 forward was a key piece of the Huskies back-to-back National Championship-winning squads. Nobody in the history of college basketball won more tournament games than Karaban.

In addition to national collegiate records, Karaban’s name is all over the UConn record books. Karaban holds the university record for games played (151), starts (150), three-pointers made (292) and most minutes played (4,909). 

The 23-year-old was born in Southerborough, Mass. He attended St. Peter-Marian High School, Algonquin Regional and North Hampton School in New Hampshire. 

Karaban is currently on the fringe of being a first-round draft pick with a consensus prospect ranking in the low 30s. 

He is a perimeter scorer in nature, taking more than five threes a game during his four-year college career. He is praised for his basketball IQ and passing ability, which is to be expected from the face of Dan Hurley’s team. 

Karaban is knocked for his defensive ability and pure athleticism. He is not a day-one starter for many, if any, teams in the league, but has a chance to carve out a role if he’s able to hit shots over NBA defenders. 

More NBA: Celtics Predicted To Add ‘Fast-Rising Center’ Who Could Elevate Frontcourt Next To Jayson Tatum

In a monumental shift in policy, the federal government plans to bar noncitizens from changing their immigration statuses except in extraordinary circumstances.

Local immigration attorneys say the move by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will impact thousands of people in the middle of the process and those planning to adjust their statuses in Massachusetts, and millions of foreign nationals nationwide. That includes students, temporary visa holders, and tourists, say attorneys.

Adjustment of status is when a noncitizen lawfully in the U.S. tries to switch to lawful permanent residence, known as a green card. It has been routine within the USCIS for decades. Adjustment of status has long allowed noncitizens to do so within the US without having to return to their country of origin.

“It’s extremely disruptive and is only going to further burden and complicate the system. It makes no sense,” said Robin Nice, a local immigration attorney.

Todd Pomerleau, a local attorney who has won cases before the Supreme Court, said that the USCIS “can’t eliminate statutory protections nor can it rewrite regulations while going through the proper channels. Otherwise, we’ll sue them in court.”

USCIS released a memo on Friday saying that the system has been abused. Specifically, the memo says the process that allows green card applicants to remain in the U.S. while applying was never intended to replace the system of applying for a visa from abroad. It instructs officers to treat adjustment of status applications as an exceptional, discretionary benefit, and that it is now “an extraordinary form of immigration relief.”

The agency says that even if applicants meet requirements for permanent residence when they’re about to apply in the US, they must leave the U.S. when their current visa ends, and wait for the State Department to process their case.

“It affects every person within the United States that is seeking adjustment of status. It affects students, it effects temporary protected status holders, it affects business visa holders,” said Annelise Araujo, a lawyer who runs an immigration practice in Boston.

Given the backlog of cases, attorneys say noncitizens will have to wait abroad for an indefinite period of time, and potentially be ineligible to return.

USCIS spokesman Zach Kahler said the change is about “returning to the original intent of the law.”

“This policy allows our immigration system to function as the law intended instead of incentivizing loopholes. When aliens apply from their home country, it reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the U.S. illegally after being denied residency,” he said in a statement. Kahler said nonimmigrants, like students, temporary workers, or people on tourist visas, come to the U.S. for a short time and for a specific purpose, and they must leave after.

Nice said the policy will drive immigrants “underground” and force them to pay thousands of extra dollars annually in renewing temporary statuses and work permits, since they won’t want to go abroad.

Araujo said the policy change will have a large impact on students. F-1 student visa holders can currently apply for green cards with limitations.

“They may change what their goals are, right? They may decide that they want to permanently stay after they’ve entered the United States and they may look for a job here. And that’s why adjustment of status exists,” she said.

Both Nice and Araujo said USCIS is wrong that this has previously been standard policy.

Araujo said the change will also impact people on work visas, like CEOs of multinational corporations, or on specialized visas, like an H-1B, a visa for foreign nationals with specialized knowledge in fields like technology, engineering, healthcare or finance.

“They can go from a non-immigrant intent, which was the intent they had at the time they applied to enter, to a immigrant intent after they’ve been in the United States,” she said. Noncitizens told they can’t have a path to a green card and work lawfully may start considering other countries.

Pomerleau recommended noncitizens thinking of adjusting their status or in the middle of it consult with an immigration attorney.

“This is just yet another sign of the government trying to make things difficult for people that are even able to follow the laws that Congress created,” said Pomerleau.

Copyright 2026 GBH News Boston

They took them under their wing.

A large stretch of a Jersey Shore beach is roped off to protect a bird’s nest just in time for Memorial Day weekend.

A pair of American Oystercatchers made their home on the sand in Belmar — and New Jersey Fish and Wildlife is prohibiting beachgoers from trespassing in the area to protect them and their eggs, according to NJ Advance Media.

The agency erected signs at 7th Avenue Beach — one of the most popular spots in Belmar — that say “Do Not Enter,” and explain that the area is a nesting area for the shorebirds, which are protected under federal law.

The placards also warn that “harassing these birds, their eggs or their young” can incur a $50,000 fine or jail time.

The birds are not listed as endangered or threatened species in New Jersey, according to Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.

However, their status has been to changed to one of “special concern.”

Many on social media agreed with the agency’s efforts to protect the creatures, which are known for their black and white body and long orange-red bill.

“Love love love this!!!! Beautiful birds! One of my favorite!” one gushed.

“Leave that cute birdie alone people,” another added.

Others thought even more safety precautions were needed.

“We should send a biologist or conservation police to guard the area,” one wrote.

DEP officials told the outlet that the length of time the area would be closed will be determined by whether the chicks opt to remain there after hatching.

If the baby birds decide to relocate to another spot on the beach, that new area will be closed off instead, the agency added.