More twists and turns in possible A’s move to Vegas

The Oakland Athletics remain mired in their years-long attempt to get a new home in the Bay Area or move to Las Vegas.

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1. More twists and turns in possible A’s move to Vegas

The Oakland Athletics remain mired in their years-long attempt to get a new home in the Bay Area or move to Las Vegas. What will they end up doing? The Sporting Tribune’s Steve Carp has the latest from Las Vegas.

There have been some developments in this sad money-grab of a saga since the calendar flipped 19 days ago. There’s a new mayor and city council in Oakland. Currently, there is no $182.9 million in grant money from the federal government’s Department of Transportation as part of a $320 million package the city was counting on to help fund the project for the infrastructure around the ballpark site at Howard Terminal, though the grant can be rewritten and resubmitted, which could ultimately get it approved.

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2. Basketball, Business, Brains and Beyond at USC: The Reggie Parris Story

As a former USC men’s basketball player and Willis O’Hunter award winner for the highest male-athlete GPA , Reggie Parris has always worn multiple hats. Before transferring to USC, he was a multisport athlete playing baseball and basketball at San Diego. While at USC he was a walk-on basketball player on a team that went to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament twice during his tenure but there’s so much more to his story, according to The Sporting Tribune’s Skyler Trepel.

It was at USC where Parris significantly lifted up the team’s GPA and also inspired teammates off the court. Now, having graduated with the Willis O’Hunter award earlier this year, he wears many hats as a client success associate at Rebel Ventures, dealing with athletes and their agents collaborating on marketing deals with major brands, but it wasn’t always this way. Parris may have achieved a 3.97 GPA as a student-athlete at USC, but there is much to be learned from his early struggles along the path that got him to where he is today. Even though Parris is now known for his excellence in education as an athlete, he wasn’t always the best student early in his educational journey.

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3. No. 5 UCLA picks up key win over Arizona State

The UCLA Bruins defeated the Arizona State Sun Devils to build a two-game lead in the Pac-12 Conference standings. The Sporting Tribune’s Kamran Nia has more from UCLA’s victory in Tempe.

The No. 5 UCLA Bruins did not repeat history. Instead, they emerged victorious in Tempe, Arizona, by defeating the Arizona State Sun Devils, 74-62. The last time the Bruins played on the road against them, they were ranked as the No. 3 team in the country before losing in double-overtime. Today, as the No. 5 ranked team, the Bruins grabbed an important win. They entered the game at the top of the Pac-12 Conference standings with a 7-0 record, while the Sun Devils trailed in second place being 6-1. The Bruins now have a two-game cushion in first place. Tyger Campbell and David Singleton led their offensive effort.

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4. Brandon Staley addresses the Chargers’ future

It was a disappointing finish for the Los Angeles Chargers following blowing a 27-0 lead against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the playoffs. Despite the loss, the Chargers announced head coach Brandon Staley would be back. The Sporting Tribune’s Fernando Ramirez was at Chargers headquarters as Staley talked about hiring a new offensive coordinator and his vision for the 2023 season.

Brandon Staley will be returning for his third season as the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers. He had his end-of-the-year press conference to cover numerous topics like what happened in Jacksonville. The press conference lasted 40 minutes, focusing on what he and his staff are looking for in a new offensive coordinator. On Tuesday morning, the team announced that they had fired offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi and quarterback coach Shane Day. “I felt like we needed to make changes to the offense,” Staley said. “The vision for the way that I have of us playing on that side of the football, I think that there is a different gear that we can get to as a football team.”

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5. Lakers fall apart late again in loss to Sacramento

The Sacramento Kings won their season series against the Los Angeles Lakers, 3-1, as the Lakers collapsed late in another game they could have won. The Sporting Tribune’s Rey Moralde has more from the latest disappointment at Crypto.com Arena.

That didn’t turn out great. The Lakers, after losing a 14-point lead early, came back from 14 down. And then they fell short at the end because they looked pretty inept in the last few minutes as the Sacramento Kings took the W in their last match-up, 116-111. Domantas Sabonis was a late scratch in this game but the Kings still had a ton of firepower. It didn’t show up early, though, as the Lakers tried to get a jump on them in the first quarter. The Lakers ran up 11 straight and boosted their lead to that aforementioned 14 points. L.A. led after one, 39-28.

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6. TST’s NBA Power Rankings Week 14

The Celtics continue to be the class of the NBA, Ja Morant and the Grizzlies keep rolling, and the Lakers and Clippers continue to lose games they should have won. So where do they all rank and what’s up with the Clippers? The Sporting Tribune’s Brandon Deutsch has you covered.

The Clippers have hobbled to a 23-22 record, but it hasn’t been easy. They have only won two out of their last eight games and have dealt with an injury to Paul George (23.7 points, 6 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game with a TS% of 58.8 and a PSA of 119.1, ranked in the 78th percentile for wings) that has kept him out since Jan. 5. On the bright side, Kawhi Leonard has averaged 23.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game over his last 10 games, and Ty Lue is finally giving crucial minutes to Terance Mann (who had 31 points against the Rockets) and Robert Covington. If the Clippers can get their defensive rating back in the top 5 (its 111.7 right now, ranked 7th), and can’t stay healthy, they will be dangerous.

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7. Odds and Ends presented by Circa Sports

Here are some odds at Circa Sports if you’re thinking about placing a wager today:

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8. Ticket Time presented by TickPick  

Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game today:

Memphis Grizzlies at Los Angeles Lakers: $110

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9. On the Air presented by Coca-Cola

Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today:

7:00 p.m. – Memphis Grizzlies at Los Angeles Lakers – Spectrum SportsNet, ESPN

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10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune 

On Thursday’s show, the crew talked about the Lakers and Clippers struggles this season and if any team in Los Angeles has a chance to win a championship in 2023.   

Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Fan in Las Vegas and the Hawaii Sports Radio Network 95.1 FM and 760 AM in Hawaii. You can also listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher.

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That’s it for today. Talk to you on Monday!