Ranking the Chargers head coaching candidates
The Sporting Tribune's Fernando Ramirez ranks all of the head coaching candidates the Chargers have interviewed or have requested to interview.
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1. Ranking the Chargers head coaching candidates
The Sporting Tribune's Fernando Ramirez ranks all of the head coaching candidates the Chargers have interviewed or have requested to interview.
The Chargers have requested to interview or interviewed 13 candidates for their vacant head coaching job.
Because of the talent on the team and quarterback Justin Herbert this makes the job even more attractive.
So, how do the candidates rank?
Here it is.
2. Cutter Gauthier opens up about trade to Ducks
The Sporting Tribune's Derek Lee writes Cutter Gauthier is excited to be in Anaheim, and ready to put everything else behind him.
For Cutter Gauthier, the last 48 hours have been a “whirlwind of emotions,” as he put it on Wednesday evening while speaking with local media via Zoom call. The Swedish-born American was acquired by the Anaheim Ducks on Monday in exchange for Jamie Drysdale in a deal that had Gauthier in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Gauthier, who was drafted fifth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2022 NHL draft, requested a trade last April after the conclusion of his freshman season at Boston College. His wish would be granted nine months later. But what caused this decision?
“It’s been a long process and a handful of months dealing with this and I don’t think it’s the right time to kind of discuss it,” said Gauthier. “There might be one day where I kind of get into the details of what happened. Right now, I kind of want to keep it to a private matter.”
3. Inuit Dome will host 2026 NBA All Star Game
Los Angeles will host All-Star Weekend at the team’s brand new arena in Inglewood, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Marisa Flores.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer held a joint press conference Tuesday to announce the NBA All-Star Game is coming back to Southern California.
The 75th annual All-Star Game is set to take place Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026 while the Intuit Dome, which is still under construction, is set to open this August.
“People in L.A. are familiar with our All-Star festivities,” Silver said. “These games are distributed in more than 200 countries. It’s not just the All-Star Game itself. There are events throughout the week.”
Ballmer outlined plans for the arena, which includes about 1,500 restrooms and a steep section of 51 rows of seats known as “The Wall” designated to Clippers fans. The sounds of construction rang in the building as he spoke on the arena floor.
4. Paul George leads Clippers to win over Thunder, 128-117
The Clippers beat Oklahoma City as the Thunder dropped their second straight game, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Marisa Flores.
The Los Angeles Clippers started out Tuesday with a press conference, announcing their plan to host the 2026 NBA All-Star Game.
As well as the day started, Tuesday night was just as good for the Clippers after the team defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena.
With their most recent win, the Clippers moved to 26-14 for the fourth seed spot in the Western Conference standings. They even up their season series with Oklahoma City after losing 115-134 back on Dec. 21. The final meeting between the two teams is set for Feb. 22.
LA made a season-high 20 three-pointers against the Thunder.
5. Lakers hope to keep it rolling against Mavericks
The Mavericks have already beaten the Lakers twice this season going into Wednesday’s game, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Rey Moralde.
Well, their last game was pretty good, wasn’t it?
The Lakers played one of their best all-around games this season as they took care of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Martin Luther King Day. Will they do it again against the Dallas Mavericks (24-17) on Wednesday in an earlier-than-usual contest (the game starts at 5:30 PM Los Angeles time and on ABC!).
The Mavericks have had the Lakers’ number this season. On Nov. 22, Kyrie Irving made a clutch three to take the win over Los Angeles, 104-101. The Lakers couldn’t even counter with their own shot in the ensuing possession. In their second match-up on Dec. 12, Dante Exum (who scored a season-high 26 points) couldn’t seem to miss in another close Mavs win. Kyrie wasn’t on the court this time but it’s tough to beat a team when they make 21 three-pointers. The Lakers dropped their second game against Dallas.
6. Angels open 2024 International Signing Period with highly-touted prospect
The Angels signed 15 players on the opening day of the period, including seven from the Dominican Republic, six from Venezuela, and two from Panama, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Taylor Blake Ward.
An annual day of celebration, the 2024 international signing period opened on Monday morning.
Young players from Latin American, South American, Oceania, Asian, and European countries signed contracts with Major League teams that kickstart their careers as Major Leaguers, with some of those deals being in place for multiple years.
The rules are relatively simple for which players are eligible to sign during the international signing period: Players who live outside of the United States, Puerto Rico, or Canada that are not enrolled in high schools in those regions who turn 16 prior to September 1 of their signing year are eligible.
Teams are allotted a specific bonus pool that they can spend on amateur international free agents, with any expenditures excess of the bonus pool being taxed with various penalties. Players who sign for $10,000 or less would not go towards the pool, but any signing bonus figure over $10,000 will have the full bonus go towards the pool (example: if a player signs for $10,001, it would not be $1 that goes towards the bonus pool, but the full $10,001.)
Players who play in professional leagues outside of the United States must be 25 years old or have played in six seasons of professional baseball to be acknowledged as Major League free agents, and without these qualifications, would have their bonuses included in the amateur international bonus pools.
Under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, clubs are subject to a spending cap for amateur international free agents. Teams are permitted to acquire 60% of their initial pools via trades during the signing period in increments of $250,000, unless the trading team has under $250,000 in their remaining bonus pool funds.
7. Odds and Ends presented by Circa Sports
Here are some odds at Circa Sports if you’re thinking about placing a wager today:
8. Ticket Time presented by Golden Gate
Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game today:
5:30 p.m. – Mavericks at Lakers – $51
9. On the Air presented by The D Las Vegas
Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today:
5:30 p.m. – Mavericks at Lakers – ABC
10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune
Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Bet 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. You can also watch every Friday on BLEAV on FuboTV.
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That’s it for today. Talk to you tomorrow!