Jason Wright was leaving church in Washington on Sunday night when his cellphone lit up. One name was from D.C. Police Chief Robert J. Contee III. One other was from Mayor Muriel E. Bowser’s workplace. Each had reached out to alert Wright, the Washington Commanders president, that working again Brian Robinson Jr. had been shot twice throughout an armed theft try.
Washington
‘We are still human’: Commanders have become well versed in coping
Elsewhere, Commanders gamers realized of the information by means of textual content messages and on social media. Sunday was an off day for the Commanders. No observe. No sport. No group conferences. But it surely grew to become a day gamers most likely will always remember, once they got here to grips with one other attempting second that was larger than the sport they play.
Quarterback Carson Wentz was texting along with his offensive linemen when he came upon. Wentz had additionally simply heard that Washington’s quarterbacks coach, Ken Zampese, was grappling with the demise of his father, former coach Ernie Zampese.
“It’s sobering,” Wentz stated. “We’re so geared towards our job. Every thing revolves round soccer, and it’s our life, and I attempt to not put my id absolutely in soccer, however you do give lots. You give lots, and it’s mentally and bodily taxing. So to have moments which might be actual life moments, that aren’t fully soccer, are fully unrelated to soccer, I believe it offers you a way of actuality and makes you notice there’s a a lot larger image and there’s way more vital issues in life.”
Robinson was discharged from the hospital and was again on the group’s facility days later to meet up with teammates. He’ll miss not less than the primary 4 video games of the season on the non-football harm listing, however the Commanders really feel lucky their teammate is alive and the accidents he suffered within the incident weren’t worse.
Robinson’s state of affairs is uncommon, however for a lot of the previous two years, the Commanders have been inundated with tough moments: sicknesses, deaths in gamers’ households, off-field drama that predates many on the roster, headlines about investigations and extra. Whereas tasked with attempting to show across the franchise’s shedding historical past on the sphere, gamers in Washington face an equally attempting activity of coping with constant turmoil and adversity.
“Sadly, you don’t need to say we’ve gotten used to tragedy . . . however issues have occurred on and off the sphere for this group the previous few years,” extensive receiver Terry McLaurin stated. “So we’ve realized lots to actually take the time and recognize what’s happening as a result of you may’t simply breeze over it or simply transfer previous it, since you’ve acquired to play soccer within the sport.”
The Commanders gamers, those within the highlight throughout Washington’s carousel of unhealthy information, proceed on.
Think about: For the reason that begin of 2020, when Coach Ron Rivera was employed, Washington has overhauled its teaching employees, modified group names twice, watched its coach endure most cancers remedy, had almost half of its group contract the coronavirus in an outbreak and felt the heartbreak of teammates when their family members died.
They performed almost a whole season and not using a head athletic coach as a result of theirs was being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. (Ryan Vermillion not too long ago reached a deferral of prosecution settlement with the federal government for illegally distributing managed substances to gamers.) In addition they realized that attorneys common in D.C. and Virginia are investigating the group and its proprietor, that the NFL is, too, together with the Home Committee on Oversight and Reform and perhaps ultimately the Federal Commerce Fee as effectively.
The troubles appeared to boil over in December, when Washington crumbled towards the Cowboys in Dallas. A skirmish broke out on the sideline between defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne. The 2 later described it as a “brotherly battle,” however the actuality was sobering. The group was reeling from the information that former security Deshazor Everett had been the driving force of a automobile that crashed and killed his girlfriend. Greater than two dozen gamers had examined optimistic for the coronavirus that month, and its once-promising profitable streak had dwindled into losses towards division rivals that ended any hope of a playoff run.
“I believe in our place, the place we’re type of at the next commonplace and we play a child’s sport however receives a commission some huge cash [and have] a number of eyes and a focus on us, individuals neglect that we’re nonetheless human typically and issues do have an effect on us on and off the sphere,” McLaurin stated. “So we simply attempt to help one another and be human as a lot as we will.”
Although some gamers attempt to keep off social media and as a substitute ask group staffers or pals to watch the information for them, the 24-hour cycle is inescapable and sometimes has included Commanders within the headlines. In March, former Washington quarterback Alex Smith advised NFL Community’s Wealthy Eisen that the surface information at all times penetrated the partitions of Washington’s facility.
“How may it not?” stated Smith, who suffered a leg harm in 2018 with Washington that just about price him his life. “All of the stuff there with simply your complete group from possession down, head teaching and GM, there’s been traditionally a number of drama there. . . . So to say that the stuff happening within the constructing doesn’t infiltrate the locker room or out on the sphere could be loopy.”
The Commanders have added assets to attempt to assist gamers cope with the stressors of the sport and life. They retained Malcolm Blacken as their senior director of participant growth to assist introduce new gamers to the world and help them when wanted. And in 2021, they employed Barbara Roberts, a medical psychologist, to be their director of wellness and medical companies.
“I want we had had an individual like this in place after I was at Northwestern and my teammate handed away,” stated Wright, referring to former Northwestern security Rashidi Wheeler, who died of a bronchial bronchial asthma assault throughout a observe in 2001. “That type of psychological look after each the collective and the person would have actually helped us lots.”
Some gamers have sought out their very own coping mechanisms.
Washington drafted McLaurin in 2019, and he’s considered one of its most skilled gamers in coping with adversity across the group. His capability to compartmentalize has been amongst his biggest belongings, alongside along with his indefatigable work ethic. But he’s not so immersed in soccer that he’s blinded by the sport. He has spoken about his work with a therapist to assist him by means of tough occasions, has recurrently cited his household and shut pals as a help community and has been vocal about being considered as extra than simply No. 17 for the Commanders.
“We’re human beings, and it does have an effect on us mentally,” McLaurin stated. “It simply shakes your entire day when issues like that occur. However we additionally perceive that we nonetheless must do our job and are available out right here and observe onerous and put together.”
Heart Chase Roullier shares an analogous mind-set.
“I believe my spouse would inform you that I’m fairly good at compartmentalization, and that’s one thing that you just get a number of observe with simply being on this trade,” he stated. “There are at all times issues happening. You’ll be able to’t ignore them. You bought to take them, you bought to course of them, however then you definitely’ve acquired to have the ability to put them on the facet a bit bit … as a result of it’s vital that you just preserve a transparent head when you’re on the market on the sphere.
“If you’re off the sphere, you may proceed to course of these issues, no matter they could be.”
Though Washington usually appears a magnet for adversity and drama, the information that Robinson had been shot shocked many. Rivera admitted he was “blindsided” when he heard, and he raced to the hospital with working backs coach Randy Jordan.
“It was onerous,” Rivera stated. “I’ve gotten a number of cellphone calls as a head coach, sadly, however this one was one of many more durable ones. To start with, as a result of he’s a heck of a younger man. He actually is greater than only a soccer participant.”
The Gonzaga men’s basketball team pulled away from Washington State for an 88-75 victory in the first meeting between the in-state rivals in over a decade.
Graham Ike led the way with 21 points on 8-for-11 from the field, Nolan Hickman added 19 points and the Bulldogs (14-4, 5-0 WCC) earned their fifth straight win to open league play by putting the Cougars (13-5, 3-2 WCC) away early in the second half. After ending the first half on an 8-2 scoring run, the Zags came out of the second half with a sense of urgency on both ends, sparking a 15-5 scoring run to make it a double-digit margin.
Here’s what Gonzaga head coach Mark Few had to say after the game.
On what he told the team at halftime that led to the strong start to the second half:
“I just told them, ‘hey, we’re in a we’re in a battle. It’s a great game. Both teams are competing really hard, and we’re at our best when we’re in attack mode.’ And they did a great job of taking the message and I thought we really went out and turned defense into offense, and we knew that was going to be a big key for us. [The Cougars] are hard to guard, they’re big and they’re physical, and [WSU coach David Riley] does a really lot of nice stuff on on offense that exploits mismatches. But our guys battled tonight, so I was really proud of them.”
On the team’s performance while Ryan Nembhard was on the bench for the final 9 minutes of the first half:
“They played great. I told them that in the locker room that that was huge. We haven’t really had to do that all year. And this guy [Nolan Hickman] stepped up. He was amazing tonight. I mean, seven boards … defensively in there, battling in the post. I mean, he did a lot of stuff that, as I said, he’s now, he set a high standard, so kind of be counting on that moving forward, but he and Dusty [Stromer] both really helped during that stretch and [Khalif Battle] and obviously having Ben [Gregg] and then Graham was rock solid all night.”
On the team’s effort on the defensive end of the floor in the second half:
“I thought our effort and our making plays, I thought it was definitely up there [with the best of the season], and just the physicality that it took. Because, again, they’re so much bigger than us at several of those spots. And again, you just don’t see the post-up thing like this, where your guards are getting constantly posted. But so in that way, we fought, we were physical and kind of had to navigate our way through a lot of different actions. There’s staggers and some curls and some switches and all that. For the most part, we did pretty good.”
The Washington Nationals have continued to invest into the pitching staff with another free agency move on Saturday.
Shared on social media, the Nationals announced that they had agreed to terms with relief pitcher Jorge Lopez on a one-year contract. That deal will be worth $3 million plus incentives per Jon Heyman.
This is the third pitcher that Washington has signed this offseason, with Michael Soroka brought in as a free agent and Trevor Williams receiving a new deal to say.
They also added another reliever, Evan Reifert, as a Rule 5 draft pick from the Tampa Bay Rays.
Lopez made headlines last year with his infamous exit from the New York Mets. He caused a stir after a loss when he referred to himself as ‘the worst teammate on the worst team in baseball.’
For a lot of players, that might spell an end to the season. The fastball-heavy reliever was able to bounce back. He was released and then signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs.
The 31-year-old came back from controversy as strong as ever, posting a 2.03 ERA over the final 26.2 innings of work.
With the loss of Kyle Finnegan, Lopez makes sense as a potential replacement at closer. He does have some closing experience, but has not been his main role for much of his career.
That season, 2022, was the year he made his first and only All-Star team.
He is a ground ball machine that loves to force bad contact. Keeping him in a situational role could also be a smart idea, given that he struggles against lefties.
No matter how he is used, this is another good signal that the Nationals don’t want to throw any season away.
Dusty May: What to know about University of Michigan’s head basketball coach
What to know about University of Michigan head basketball coach Dusty May.
For Michigan basketball, the recent West Coast trip went about as well as hoped.
The No. 24 Wolverines (12-3, 4-0 Big Ten) picked up a pair of double-digit wins against the Big Ten’s Los Angeles-based teams — topping USC, 85-74, last Saturday and then defeating No. 21 UCLA, 94-75, Tuesday night as wildfires raged a few miles away — and now return home looking to make it three consecutive wins against league newcomers, welcoming Washington (10-6, 1-4) to Ann Arbor on Sunday afternoon (2 p.m., Big Ten Network).
The Huskies’ first trip to the Midwest hasn’t started well; they were dog-walked by Michigan State in East Lansing, 88-54, on Thursday. U-W trailed by 29 points at the half (42-13) and by more than 40 points in the second half (82-41 with less than five minutes to play) in an utter annihilation.
After two tight wins in conference play — by three points over Wisconsin and two over Iowa — U-M has won four games in a row by double digits and could make it five straight, with one of the bottom teams in the Big Ten coming to town.
Great Osobor with not-so-great help
U-Dub forward Great Osobor made headlines this offseason when he transferred from Utah State to Washington (following head coach Danny Sprinkle) for a then-record NIL deal worth $2 million.
Apparently, money doesn’t buy wins, because while Osobor has been decent, it hasn’t been nearly enough for the Huskies.
The senior leads the Huskies in scoring (13.8 points per game) and rebounding (8.4) but his efficiency has taken a large drop, as he has shot just 45% from the floor on 3s after hitting at least 57.7% in each of his first three college seasons. Some of that might be attributable to his increased 3-point tries — after attempting just 18 3s (and making four, for a 22.2% success rate) in his first 104 games, he has 14 3-point tries in 16 games this season (with only two makes, a 15.3% rate). More concerning is his 2-point shooting percentage: After hitting 59.1% last season, he’s at 47.7% inside the arc this season.
He has scored in double figures in 11 games with the Huskies, though much of his success came in a weak nonconference schedule. Though he put up 20 points and 14 rebounds vs. Maryland, he had just nine points and three boards vs. USC and a combined 15 points and eight rebounds vs. Illinois and MSU.
Sophomore guard Tyler Harris (Portland) is next at 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while freshman point guard Zoom Diallo, a top-50 recruit according to 247 Sports’ composite rankings, averages 10.8 points per contest for Sprinkle’s team.
Overall, U-Dub is simply not up to Big Ten standard. On defense, the Huskies are No. 7 nationally in limiting 3-pointers (28%) and No. 69 in efficiency (99.9), per KenPom, but on offense, the Huskies are No. 149 in efficiency (107.4), No. 201 in 2-point shooting (50.1%) and No. 240 on 3s (32%).
Depth on display
The Wolverines, meanwhile, continue to flex their depth and balance with each passing game.
Michigan just defeated UCLA by 19 on the road and did so by scoring 94 points (the most a Mick Cronin team has ever allowed at home) without perhaps its most proven guard: Roddy Gayle Jr. (knee bruise) missed Tuesday’s game vs. the Bruins. U-M coach Dusty May said then it was too early to say if he’d play Sunday.
“Long-term health is priority No. 1 for us,” May said. “But I would say he’ll be back relatively soon.”
Gayle is one of five U-M players scoring in double figures for May in his first season in Ann Arbor. After putting up a career-high 36 points vs. the Bruins, center Vlad Goldin now leads the Wolverines at 15.8 points per game. Point guard Tre Donaldson (13.1 points) is next while Danny Wolf, Goldin’s frontcourt partner, averages a double-double at 12.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.
All three had standout games on the trip; Wolf started the L.A. double-dip becoming just the third NCAA player in more than 20 years with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and six blocks, and Donaldson made a career-high four 3-pointers vs. USC, then topped it with six vs. UCLA.
And then there’s Gayle (12.4 points) and Nimari Burnett (10.5 points), who are both shooting better than 50% from the floor. Every starter has led the team in scoring at least once this season, a major reason U-M leads the country in 2-point shooting (62%) and effective field goal percentage (60.2%).
“I mean numbers don’t lie,” Donaldson said. “We’re shooting over 60% inside the arc, I mean just continuing to do that. We got big guys out here … with Danny doing what he does in and out. It’s hard to guard. Nobody’s seen nothing like that before.”
Prediction for Michigan basketball vs. Washington
The Wolverines’ outlook is worlds away from a year ago, when it was often U-M on the wrong side of the talent and coaching ledger. U-M is better than Washington in every facet. As long as the Wolverines don’t have a horrendous shooting night, or commit an egregious number of turnovers (they’re 16th nationally, at 15.2 per game), they just have too much talent and depth for U-Dub to slow down. The pick: U-M 88, Washington 68.
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
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