Luka Dončić injured by Cavs' raised court

SDSU men's basketball cruises to an easy victory over Colorado State, SDSU women's basketball finds success with field trip games, Lakers lose their star in Cleveland, and a lot more.

There’s not a lot going on in the world of sports right now. We have reached a little bit of a lull in football, baseball and soccer. After the Super Bowl (still more than a week away), the NBA and NHL get serious (with trade deadlines and then a sprint to the playoffs) while MLB and MLS gets underway. It’ll get a lot more fun soon.

Still, we march on with a daily newsletter filled with links that are (mostly) about sports…..

San Diego sports

Shorthanded San Diego State beats Colorado State, remains in first place - San Diego Union-Tribune
The Aztecs looked pretty darn good, rolling to another Mountain West victory, this one 73-50 against Colorado State at soldout Viejas Arena that kept them in first place in the Mountain West at 9-1 heading into Saturday morning’s showdown at second-place Utah State.

Toreros Battle Back to Win in Overtime Thriller at Pepperdine - USD Toreros
With their backs to the wall at the Firestone Fieldhouse, USD men’s basketball overcame a late second-half deficit to beat Pepperdine in overtime, 92-88 Wednesday night.

Trailing by nine points with over four minutes remaining and star point guard Ty-Laur Johnson fouled out of the game, ESPN’s computer analytics had San Diego at a 6.3% chance to win.

The Toreros had other ideas, however, going on a 9-0 run and even taking the lead late, seeing the game go to overtime. The visitors rode the momentum into OT and never looked back again claiming a road victory out of a game that featured 14 lead changes and seven ties.

Ranking all 30 MLB farm systems, from the Brewers to the Padres - The Athletic
(The Padres have) traded so many guys that there’s very little left in the system, with relievers and longshots populating most of their top 20. Their first two picks from the 2020 and 2022 drafts are all gone in trades, as are their first three selections in 2023 and their second- and third-rounders from 2024. They also traded their top prospect, Leo De Vries, in a huge package for Mason Miller last July. Two of their top three remaining prospects, Ethan Salas and Kash Mayfield, had disappointing showings last year, and their 2025 draft was hurt by the lack of a second-round pick. Many of those trades have brought the team to the playoffs, or into contention, and they are probably a playoff contender again in 2026, but the supply of prospects is not infinite, not even for a very scouting-focused organization like this one.

From field trips to fandom at SDSU, plus this week’s schedules - Her Sports San Diego
At its core, the idea is simple. Field trip games give kids the chance to experience a college campus, watch high-level basketball, and see women competing at the top of their sport. For San Diego State, the timing couldn’t be better. The Aztecs are 15–3, sit alone atop the Mountain West conference standings, have won 11 games in a row, and are coming off a season in which they captured the Mountain West tournament title.

The big crowds matter for the athletes, too. The players work relentlessly, compete hard, and rarely get to play in front of packed weekday crowds. The recognition, at 8,000 strong, matters.

Field trip games themselves aren’t new. SDSU has hosted them since at least the 2018–19 season. But over the past three years, the upward shifts in attendance have been extraordinary.

Odds & Ends

Hot mics caught Luka Dončić complaining about Cavs’ court after injury - For The Win
Dončić was visibly in pain following the incident and demanded to know whose decision it was to have the court set up that way.

LeBron James tears up over tribute video as Cavs rout Lakers - ESPN
There was no definitive statement by LeBron James after the Lakers lost 129-99 to the Cavaliers that Wednesday was his final game played in Cleveland. But then again, there was no definitive statement by James that it wasn’t.

“I’m just trying to take everything in, not take the moments for granted,” James said. “Because it could be [my last season]. I obviously haven’t made a decision on the future, but it very well could be.”

James was moved to tears during a first-quarter video tribute by the Cavaliers that showed highlights of his epic performance in Game 5 of the 2007 Eastern Conference finals when, as a 22-year-old, he scored 48 points -- including 25 straight to finish the game -- and beat the favored Detroit Pistons in double overtime.

Report: Cavaliers would welcome LeBron James back next season for third stint with team - Yahoo Sports
James is amid the longest uninterrupted stay with a team of his NBA career. But his contract is set to expire at the end of this season, and the 26-year-old Dončić has become the focal point for a franchise that James helped return to the mountain top with an NBA championship after the 2019-20 season.

If James doesn’t retire and decides to take his talents back to Cleveland for the 2026-27 season, he’d be embarking on his third stint with the Cavaliers, who famously selected the Akron, Ohio, native out of St. Vincent–St. Mary High School with the No. 1 pick in the 2003 draft.

The Ringer’s 2026 NFL Draft Guide
This feels like a no-brainer for the Raiders, who add a potential franchise pillar in Mendoza. The Heisman winner is cool as a cucumber under pressure, throws with accuracy and touch, and, perhaps most importantly for Las Vegas, has shown he is capable of elevating a downtrodden program to never-before-seen heights.

Bill Belichick belongs in the Hall of Fame. But here’s why I didn’t vote for him - Kansas City Star
Separate from the vote-down of modern era candidates from 15 to as many as five, the aspect involving Belichick illogically lumps together in one category the coaching candidate, the contributor candidate (in this case, Patriots owner Robert Kraft) and three seniors (we’ll come back to those). Voters can choose three of the five at most, and an 80% approval (40 votes) is needed for any to go forward. One simple way to consider this: Under a setup that should be separate and distinct, even Belichick and Kraft essentially are in competition.

The Empty Threat of a World Cup Boycott - Sports Politika
In truth, the vast majority of mega-event boycotts fail to achieve their intended effect. Although they are typically framed as tools to pressure governments into changing policy—by raising global awareness and stripping host nations of legitimacy and prestige—they rarely succeed on those terms. Visibility alone does not translate into leverage. Unless a boycott is paired with sustained economic sanctions, diplomatic isolation, or meaningful institutional exclusion, it remains largely symbolic. By the time a World Cup or Olympic Games arrives, host governments have already absorbed the bulk of the financial and political costs, locked in sponsorships, and secured broadcast deals, leaving them with little incentive to concede under external pressure.

In some cases, the strategy backfires entirely. Rather than delegitimizing the host, international shaming can be repurposed into a narrative of national grievance, reinforcing domestic support and hardening political resolve. This dynamic is particularly pronounced in the United States under Donald Trump, where the administration has openly embraced spectacle and confrontation as instruments of power. Far from being vulnerable to reputational damage, Trump has leveraged America’s hegemonic status to centralize control and project defiance, using external criticism not as a constraint but as proof of dominance.