The Gophers men’s basketball program’s initial recruiting class under new head coach Niko Medved is off to a stronger start.

It’s still early in the cycle, but the three total recruits in the 2026 class have the U at seventh in the nation, according to 247Sports.

And there is a “possibility” for one more, Medved said Monday.

“It’s got to be the right guy,” he said. “We’ve got some guys that have visited that we really, really like, so we will see where that goes.”

One of those candidates is four-star shooting guard Joseph Hartman. The Gainesville, Fla. product visited the Gophers last week. Hartman has more than 15 offers and has posted about other recent visits to Butler and Iowa.

Quinn Costello, a four-star forward prospect from Boston, visited the U in late August, but he committed to Michigan in the last few weeks. Costello’s high school teammate, four-star guard Lucas Morillo, also visited Dinkytown and has yet to commit.

The Gophers current recruiting class includes four-star wing Nolen Anderson (Wayzata), three-star point guard Cedric Tomes (East Ridge) and three-star center Chadrick Mpoyi (Irvine, Calif.)

Schedule buzz

Medved didn’t have to look far for a breakdown of the Gophers’ newly released Big Ten schedule; he heard about it at a family function on Sunday.

“They know it better than I do,” Medved said Monday with a laugh. “Honestly, (I) just kind of focus on today.”

Scouting of the U’s upcoming conference opponents will come later. On Monday, Medved led his debut team in its first official practice at William Arena.

Medved knows the Gophers open up against Indiana — and new Hoosiers head coach Darian DeVries — at The Barn on Dec. 3 and then travel to powerhouse Purdue on Dec. 10. He is also aware of another highlight: rivals Iowa and Wisconsin are part of a three-game stretch (along with Southern Cal) at The Barn in early January.

“They were laying out all this stuff, who we go to and who comes here,” Medved said of his family. “… That just seems so far down the horizon right now.”

The Gophers have less than a month to prepare for their two exhibition games against North Dakota State (Oct. 16) and North Dakota (Oct. 25). The season opener against Gardner-Webb is at Williams Arena on Nov. 3.

Injury news

B.J. Omot, a transfer wing from the University of California, has been fully cleared to practice, Medved said. Omot, a Mankato native, missed summer workouts to have surgery for a stress fracture in his shin.

“He’s been building up, but getting him back out there has been great for us,” Medved said. “That gives us another player that we are really really excited about.”

Chance Stephens, a transfer from Maryland, is dealing with illness and has been sidelined. And Max Gizzi, a transfer from Huntington, broke his foot, had surgery and is out for an estimated six weeks.

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The Lynx trailed Phoenix by seven at halftime in Game 1 of the WNBA semifinal series on Sunday in Minneapolis. Everything changed over the final two frames, largely thanks to the play of Minnesota’s floor general.

Courtney Williams exploded for 12 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals in the second half as Minnesota proceeded to run the Mercury off the floor in an 82-69 victory in the first game of the Western Conference semifinals at Target Center.

Minnesota won the minutes that Williams player by 18 points after the intermission.

“Court was terrific,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said. “Yeah, player of the game for us.”

Williams was asked what seems to cause her to crank it up in the second halves of games. Frankly, the guard wasn’t sure how to respond.

“I think it’s just that I want to win, so it may look like that. I don’t know if that’s a compliment or not, because I should bring the same energy for 40 minutes,” she said. “Maybe it’s just a different perspective for you, because it’s go time.”

The stats suggest Williams is strong at all stages of games. But what is consistent is that as she goes, so do the Lynx.

Williams sported Minnesota’s second-highest net rating — trailing only Napheesa Collier — among the major contributors this season, with the Lynx outscoring opponents by 13 points per 100 possessions with Williams on the court.

When she’s rolling, the Lynx are nearly impossible to contain. Her positive energy permeates through her team and, when the games are at Target Center — as will be the case again for Game 2 on Tuesday — the entire building.

“I always have confidence in Courtney. But between her and (reserve guard Natisha Hiedeman), their pace, it’s a 40-minute game,” Lynx guard Kayla McBride said. “So, when we’re able to have spurts of that in transition, her getting to her pullup, things like that, it gives us energy as a group when we get out in transition.

“That’s our bread and butter. So, when she’s out there hooping and confident, it’s contagious. It just becomes a lot of fun out there playing the game within the game.”

Williams can be Minnesota’s barometer, but she also has a strong gauge for what’s required for the team to be successful. At halftime Sunday, after the Lynx defense was gouged for 20 minutes, Reeve noted Williams played a role in the decision to tinker with the defensive coverage to help slow Phoenix’s Alyssa Thomas-led attack.

“She was like, ‘Can we try this? Can we do this?’ ”  Reeve said. “She kind of put her money where her mouth was and tried to change things for us and make things a little more difficult (for Phoenix).”

Reeve said Williams led Minnesota in deflections, while also recording a career-high five steals.

“If I see a moment, just instinctually, I go,” Williams said. “Sometimes it don’t always work out, but it worked out tonight. I just follow my instincts.”

Just as the Lynx follow Williams, frequently to success.

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AFSCME union members representing Ramsey County workers are opposing the county’s proposal to close its Detox and Withdrawal Management Program.

In a statement last week the AFSCME Council 5, AFSCME Local 8 and AFSCME Local 151 called on the county to reconsider the closure in order “to prioritize community health and safety over short-term budgetary decisions.”

“Our members at Ramsey County have dedicated themselves to helping people in crisis — guiding them through some of the darkest and most dangerous moments of their lives,” said Bart Andersen, executive director of AFSCME Council 5 in the statement. “Closing this program down is not just a loss of jobs; it will be a betrayal of our community. It means fewer people will get the essential care they need, and more families will face the heartbreak of losing a loved one. This is wrong and preventable, and we will not be silent about the harm it will undoubtedly cause.”

County officials earlier this month shared their proposed budget for 2026 and 2027 which includes closing the program on Dec. 31 if the budget is approved. The proposed budget also includes the reduction of 43 staff positions, most of whom work for the program.

Those services would then transition to community providers, according to county officials.

“This service has underperformed expected financial targets year-over-year and has had significant deficits for several years. Transitioning to a community-based model aligns with best practices of other counties and is anticipated to reduce county costs by at least $2 million annually,” county officials said in a statement Thursday.

They also noted that Ramsey is one of two counties in the state running their own detox and withdrawal management service management service. “Our facility averages approximately 10 clients a day when we have the operational capacity to serve 50.”

County officials said the decision to propose closing the program came after ensuring that other metro area substance use disorder treatment resources are available with other community providers.

“Our most strategic role is to build the capacity of other agencies who have experience providing substance use disorder treatment, by enhancing and expanding their services,” county officials said in the statement. “We will be offering capacity building grants this fall as part of our transition plan.”

Union officials said in their statement that the closure will displace frontline workers and strip critical resources from the community.

“We also have serious concerns surrounding the potential privatizing of these services to organizations with questionable ethical ties to county leadership staff and hired analysts who were contracted to study the public program’s effectiveness,” union officials said.

County service teams are holding budget presentations throughout this month. Community members will be able to provide feedback on the proposed budget during public hearings Monday and Dec. 11 before its expected approval on Dec. 16.

Union officials said affected workers and others will attend the next public hearing which will take place at 5 p.m. in the council chambers of the Ramsey County Courthouse on Monday.

For more information on the public hearings on the proposed county budget and tax levy, visit ramseycounty.us/your-government/leadership/board-commissioners/board-meetings-information/public-hearings-notices.

To learn more about the proposed budget, go to ramseycounty.us/your-government/budget-finance.

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“If AI is the next creative and economic medium, it must be in the hands of the New Yorkers who too often get invited last—public housing residents.”

NYCHA’s Hylan Houses. (Adi Talwar/City Limits)

New York City’s public housing communities have always been engines of culture, grit, and ingenuity. If we genuinely believe AI will shape the next century of work and creativity, then the front line for equitable access must be New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) community centers, reimagined as neighborhood AI hubs that deliver training, credentials, and real economic mobility.

This isn’t abstract. New York is building the infrastructure to lead in responsible AI. Empire AI—a statewide public-interest supercomputing initiative housed at SUNY Buffalo—just moved into its next phase, expanding computer access to researchers across a 10-member consortium. Pair that with CUNY’s AI Academic Hub, now offering 170+ AI-focused courses and entry programs like “AI-One: CUNY AI for Everyone.” The spine is there. Now we need the capillaries: local, trusted access points in NYCHA community centers. 

ChatGPT 5.0 is here. OpenAI’s newest flagship model is more innovative across coding, math, and real-world tasks, and is now the default in ChatGPT and rolling into developer and enterprise tools. Technology is quickly advancing and changing the way society functions and how people will perform their jobs. AI is not here to displace people from the workplace; it is here to welcome them and be more productive, if you know how to use it. It also offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to utilize the technology to create businesses, jobs, and reduce poverty. 

Despite near-universal availability of wired broadband, one in four city households lacked a fixed broadband subscription as of 2023, mostly in low-income communities like NYCHA. Many rely on cellular-only connections, limiting the kind of learning, coding, and portfolio-building that AI work demands. We need durable, local solutions that fuse access with training in low-income communities. An AI community-centered training model can fill that gap.

New York State has stepped in with consumer-protection moves to require low-cost internet service provider plans, but price alone won’t close a skills gap. An AI Hub in public housing would reimagine NYCHA community rooms, often used for a wide range of intergenerational programs, into dedicated, always-on technology centers.

Unlike the current NYCHA model, where activities span many topics, these hubs would focus intensively on one subject area: building AI and technology skills that lead directly to education, credentials, and jobs. Renovated or repurposed in underutilized community spaces in neighborhoods most in need, each hub would be equipped with high-speed broadband, modern devices, and on-site coaching staff to guide learning, along with connections to technology companies and community partners.

The curriculum would align with CUNY certificates and the SUNY/CUNY Reconnect program’s high-demand fields, including data, health technology, IT support, and green tech. Residents would gain hands-on experience with GPT-5-level systems (and others) for coding, data analysis, design, entrepreneurship, and assistive AI, with practical applications for resumes, small-business automation, and creative portfolios.

From these neighborhood hubs, learners could transition into internships and applied research projects, with tailored pathways for first-generation students, career changers, and those without prior degrees, or direct fellowships with employers. The program would build on Soulful Synergy’s decade of workforce training experience with over 11,000 people trained and over 15,000 certifications earned.

Its partnership with the Public Housing Community Fund, through the NYCHA Technology Academy, is delivering instruction rooted in the community and responsive to employer needs. These hubs would ensure that the future of AI in New York City and beyond evolves in a way that does not harm low-income populations and provides the most incredible opportunity to access technology and jobs.

Public housing communities produce the art, music, food, fashion, and small businesses that define New York. By definition, public housing also serves the lowest-income people. If AI is the next creative and economic medium, it must be in the hands of the New Yorkers who too often get invited last—public housing residents. An AI hub model compresses the distance between inspiration, training, credentials, and a first paid project right in the neighborhood.

The moment could not be more urgent. New York has already laid the foundation: free community college for adults in high-demand fields, a statewide public-interest AI supercomputer, a public university system rapidly scaling AI coursework, and a city wiring public housing for high-speed internet. What’s missing is the last mile—the trusted, accessible local hubs that can transform AI’s potential into tangible resident opportunities for people that need it most.

Now is the time to plant the flag, commit resources, and build the partnerships that will ensure AI becomes the great equalizer it is meant to be.

Alex Zablocki is executive director at Public Housing Community Fund. Dwayne R. Norris is co-founder of Soulful Synergy.

The post Opinion: Plant the Flag, And Bring AI to Public Housing appeared first on City Limits.