INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 03: Jalen Tolbert #WO33 of South Alabama runs a drill in the course of the NFL … [+] Mix at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 03, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Picture by Justin Casterline/Getty Photographs)
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Not way back it might have been robust to envisage a third-round rookie receiver having a lot shot at gaining vital taking part in time for the Dallas Cowboys. Nonetheless, because the Cowboys start their preparations for the 2022 season, the early indicators are Jalen Tolbert might play a outstanding function.
Final 12 months, the Cowboys had top-of-the-line receiving corps within the NFL. Going into 2022, it’s tough to make that case following the departures of Amari Cooper and Cedrick Wilson from a gaggle which may not get Michael Gallup again from a knee harm till after the season begins.
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CeeDee Lamb, Dallas’ first-round decide in 2020, is the clear prime wideout for the Cowboys. However, with Gallup’s standing for the start of the marketing campaign up within the air, Tolbert might open the 12 months as large receiver two, with Jon Machota of The Athletic reporting from rookie minicamp that the previous South Alabama wideout has an opportunity to have the largest rapid influence of any of the Cowboys’ draft picks.
Tolbert brings versatility having began as an out of doors receiver in faculty whereas additionally not too long ago spending time within the slot. On prime of that, he provides first rate dimension after measuring at simply over 6ft 1in and 194 kilos together with spectacular big-play potential.
Averaging 17.6 yards per reception throughout 4 seasons with South Alabama, Tolbert’s 22 faculty touchdowns got here throughout his last three years, manufacturing that’s intriguing given he’s nonetheless studying the sport of soccer having solely began taking part in it in highschool.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, per Machota, stated of Tolbert: “One of many issues he made a giant level of in our preliminary dialog was he’s fairly younger on the recreation of soccer.
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“He hasn’t performed a number of soccer. To me, that is thrilling. Utilizing his phrases, he stated, ‘I do not understand how excessive (my) ceiling goes to be, however I believe it will be fairly rattling excessive.’”
Enjoying with a quarterback of Dak Prescott’s skills and on an offense that was sixth in Soccer Outsiders passing DVO
VO A final season, Tolbert is in a superb state of affairs to understand that ceiling.
Making the transition from the Solar Belt to the NFL will likely be difficult for Tolbert however, although he could need to compete with veteran James Washington for taking part in time, the numerous modifications the Cowboys have made at wideout this offseason could enable him to start out illustrating his potential on the highest stage ahead of anticipated.
The Dallas Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 117-116 on Saturday night to advance to the Western Conference Finals but had to wait until Sunday night to know their opponent. With a 98-90 win in Game 7 over the reigning champion Denver Nuggets, the Mavericks will be playing the Minnesota Timberwolves next round with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line. The Timberwolves made the largest halftime comeback in Game 7 history to advance.
This is a matchup of two of the younger superstars in the NBA, as Luka Doncic will face off against phenom Anthony Edwards. The Timberwolves have a stifling defense, having the NBA’s best defensive rating throughout the regular season, though the Mavericks had the best defensive rating over the last 20 games of the season.
READ MORE: Dallas Mavericks Rally To Advance to Western Conference Finals: 3 Game-Changing Plays
It’s only the second-ever matchup between these two franchises, a Dallas Mavericks’ sweep in three games in 2002 as Dirk Nowitzki established himself as a better number-one option over Kevin Garnett. This is only Minnesota’s second-ever appearance in the Western Conference Finals as a franchise, matching Luka Doncic’s career, with their other appearance coming in 2003.
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Minnesota won the season series 3-1, though all of those games came before February and Dallas made their trades to bring in Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington. Because of that, it’s not certain how Dallas will matchup, but I’d imagine Daniel Gafford will guard Rudy Gobert, P.J. Washington will guard Karl-Anthony Towns, Derrick Jones Jr. will guard Anthony Edwards, Luka Doncic will guard Jaden McDaniels, and Kyrie Irving will start on Mike Conley. Doncic will have to deal with a pesky defender once again, as he’s likely to draw the McDaniels assignment.
Anthony Edwards has been impressive these playoffs, averaging around 30 PPG. His ascension along the steady-handedness of the veteran Mike Conley has been electric to watch. Derrick Jones Jr. will have his hands full with this matchup.
The Mavericks will need their bigs to show up in this series. They were able to dominate a smaller Oklahoma City Thunder team on the glass but it’ll be much harder to do that against a massive Minnesota frontline, featuring Gobert, Towns, and Sixth Man of the Year winner Naz Reid. If Dallas could get Maxi Kleber back from his shoulder sprain in this series, it could go a long way, just to give them more versatility and match up with Towns’ skillset.
Game 1 will start at 7:30 p.m. CST from the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
READ MORE: Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving Tandem Instrumental in Deep Playoff Run
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Stick with MavericksGameday for more coverage of the Dallas Mavericks throughout the NBA Playoffs
A 25-year-old man faces a capital murder of multiple persons charge for his alleged role in two women’s shooting deaths in Old East Dallas.
Saadiq Shabazz was booked Saturday night into the Dallas County jail and is being held on a $3 million bond, records show. It was unclear whether he had an attorney.
Officers responded about 3 a.m. Saturday to the 2400 block of North Washington Avenue, near Lemmon Avenue, and found three gunshot victims, police said at the time.
Two woman, identified by police as 22-year-old Jalisa Lockett and 24-year-old Amaya Lockett, died at the scene while a man was taken to the hospital and listed in stable condition.
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Shabazz was arrested later that day but details, such as what led police to identify him as a suspect, were not immediately clear.
This investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information can contact Detective Josue Rodriguez at 214-605-1557 or josue.rodriguez@dallaspolice.gov and reference case No. 077110-2024.
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2 women killed in shooting, man wounded in Old East Dallas, police say
