#draft-picks

#draft-picks

The Grizzlies suddenly have a treasure trove of future firsts. Per Bobby Marks of ESPN, the Grizzlies' tally is 13 first-rounders across the next seven seasons. Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reports that Utah is sending Memphis its most favorable first-rounder in 2027 between the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Jazz; the Los Angeles Lakers' 2027 first-round pick; and the Phoenix Suns' 2031 first.

The pros of trading Laughton are pretty simple: you could get a good return for him. The Leafs acquired Laughton with half his salary being retained, a fourth-round draft pick in 2025, and a 2027 sixth-round draft pick at last season's trade deadline. They gave up Nikita Grebenkin and a 2027 first-round draft pick. Many, including myself, didn't like the trade when it happened, but Laughton has turned into an integral piece of this lineup.

Law separated the teams into different Tiers, and then numbered them 1-30. The Blue Jays ranked in Tier 6, the second lowest, and 25th overall. The other teams in Tier 6 were Miami Marlins (No. 22) followed by Colorado Rockies, West Sacramento Athletics, Toronto and Texas Rangers. Law wrote, "In fairness, they nearly won the World Series, and traded a lot of prospects to get there, sending nearly all of their top pitching prospects after Trey Yesavage to other clubs to bolster their roster for the stretch run."

Despite being a near-unwatchable product on the field in recent years, the Washington Nationals have had pretty fantastic luck when it comes to having the odds bounce in their favor. Specifically, the ping pong balls for the MLB Draft Lottery have resulted in their favor more often than not, but the team has been unable to take full advantage. Them not being able to take advantage is actually no fault of their own but is in fact due to an outright stupid rule change that Major League Baseball implemented a few years ago.

Williams, a former first-round pick from Alabama, has racked up 322 tackles, 101 QB hits and 40 sacks since joining the Jets in 2019. He was the Jets' 2019 first-round draft pick, has been a key piece of the defense since his arrival. He has gone to the Pro Bowl in each of the last three seasons and was first-team All-Pro in 2022.

SAN JOSE Michael Misa will headline a group of five first-round draft picks on the San Jose Sharks team that will take part in next week's three-team Rookie Faceoff event in Anaheim. Misa, who was selected overall by the Sharks at the NHL Draft in June, joins first-round picks Filip Bystedt (2022) and Quentin Musty (2023), both forwards, defenseman Sam Dickinson (2024), and goalie Josh Ravensbergen (2025) on the 24-player team, which was announced Tuesday.

The Minnesota Vikings and Carolina Panthers are finalizing a trade for wide receiver Adam Thielen to return to Minnesota, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter. The Vikings will receive Thielen, who spent the first 10 years of his career in Minnesota, a conditional 2026 seventh-round draft pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick, sources told Schefter, while the Panthers will get a 2026 fifth-round pick and a 2027 fourth-round pick.

Kyson Witherspoon, the No. 15 pick, signed for a $5 million signing bonus, according to MLB.com's Jim Callis. That's slightly under his slot value of $5,114,200.

Justin Pogge, selected 90th overall in 2004, was considered the next great Canadian goaltender but never developed into a successful NHL player after impressive junior performance.

The first half is dead. Long live the first half. Now, it's time for an All-Star break breather and the Home Run Derby tonight!

Caitlin Clark selected her Indiana teammate Aliyah Boston first overall in the WNBA All-Star Game draft, showcasing a strong start with a well-rounded team including Kelsey Mitchell.