30 Jan 2026

Anthony Edwards suggests he’s ready to sacrifice scoring for defense, and Timberwolves wins

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Anthony Edwards didn’t want to jinx it, but he smiled and noted he’s “liking the way” the Timberwolves’ defense looks at the moment.

Minnesota has won three straight following its dismantling of the Thunder on Thursday, with defense leading the charge in all three victories.

That side of the ball has been Minnesota’s Hallmark for the last couple seasons – both of which resulted in Western Conference Finals runs – but the defensive performances this season have been up and down.

Edwards knows the antidote to the inconsistency.

“I think it just starts with me on the defensive end,” he said. “If I’m guarding at a high level, I think everybody’s gonna do it. So I just gotta, you know, make my mind up and choose to do it.”

While this season may mark Edwards’ worst on the defensive end since his rookie campaign, Thursday was another reminder of how high his ceiling is on that end of the floor.

The superstar said there 100% are nights where he decides to take over the game defensively, adding that’s something he wants to do more frequently, while noting “it’s always tough.” Because it does require high levels of energy, which aren’t easy to muster when you’re also your team’s primary offensive producer. But perhaps that end is where energy can be saved.

All eight rotation players scored seven-plus points Thursday. The Wolves have enough collective firepower to fuel the ship without Edwards having to go full inferno mode.

“I think I just gotta lean on my teammates a little bit more on offense and like just trust in them a little bit more,” he said. “And then just give more on the defensive end.”

Edwards tallied two steals and a block Thursday, while Thunder players he was guarding went 1 for 7 from the field.

“As long as he’s doing that,” Jaden McDaniels said, “we’re going to be good defensively.”

Which is Minnesota’s true motor. The Wolves parlayed 15 Thunder turnovers into 30 points the other way. Stops spark transition. Transition lends itself to equal opportunity offense, organically creating scoring chances for the likes of McDaniels, Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo.

“It just makes the flow easier. It don’t matter who’s going in transition,” McDaniels said. “We’ll just make the right play. I might have it in transition and I might pass back to Naz and it might be a pass-pass for 3 or just take it yourself. Just being confident and just making the right play.”

Suddenly, everyone around Edwards is catching a rhythm and competing with confidence. When that’s the case, the Wolves are a tough pack with which to run. Even down three rotational pieces Thursday, Oklahoma City is still the NBA’s best defensive team. Yet Minnesota shot 51% from the floor and 47% from distance.

“I think we played a very connected game,” Wolves coach Chris Finch said. “I thought we found the right guy open offensively a lot. I thought we started the game with a lot of really good structure, execute our sets and concepts well. And then when we went to iso for the most part, I thought we were good and finding a kick out and just finding Rudy and those types of things.”

Everybody ate. No heavy lifting was required from any individual, which freed up reserves to expend on the other end and, in turn, elevated Minnesota to the peak of its powers.

Thunder players outside of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had trouble merely dribbling the ball, let alone serving as any type of legitimate scoring threat on a night.

“That’s our defense at its best form,” Finch said. “Really good physicality on the ball, set the tone there. Did a good job at one point with our coverages and execution of those things. It’s certainly like what we’re capable of. And we got to bring that out more, not just wait for the best team in the league to come to town, so that’s a challenge.”

One, specifically, for the team’s best player to take on. For the Timberwolves to be a true championship contender, Edwards does indeed have to dominate every night – it’s just not on the end of the floor everyone suspects.

“We got to be ready to play like we playing the Thunder every night … I think I take a lot of the teams that we play that’s like, not that good, for granted. So it starts with me, for sure,” Edwards said. “I just got to (defend like) that on a night in, night out basis. Like I always say, it’s tough, because I know it’s a lot. But I got to be willing to do it every night.”

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30 Jan 2026

Vikings shockingly fire general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah

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In a shocking move, the Vikings have fired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, a decision that signals the start of sweeping change for a franchise trying to quickly get back on track following a disappointing campaign.

The plan is for vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski to lead the Vikings through the 2026 NFL Draft. His experience and expertise should help provide some stability in the short term.

Though there have long been rumors of internal strife surrounding Adofo-Mensah throughout his tenure, there was no indication that the Vikings were going to part ways with him in the present. He sign a contract extension last offseason and was representing the organization this week at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala.

Now the Vikings will move forward looking for a different voice to lead them into the future.

In a statement released by the Vikings on social media, co owners Mark Wilf and Zygi Wilf said after careful consideration over the past few weeks they decided it was time to move forward with new leadership in football operations.

“These decisions are never easy,” the Wilfs said. “We are grateful for Kwesi’s contributions and commitment to the organization over the past four years and wish him and his family the best in the future.”

After the 2026 NFL Draft, the Wilfs said they intend to conduct a thorough search to identify the next general manager. They ended by emphasizing that chasing a Super Bowl fuels them constantly, saying, “We look forward to bring our fans the success they so deserve.”

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30 Jan 2026

Tens of thousands enter 6th day without power as Carolinas and Virginia prep for a winter storm

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By SOPHIE BATES, SUDHIN THANAWALA and RUSS BYNUM

BELZONI, Miss. (AP) — Tens of thousands of people entered their sixth day with no electricity Friday as the Carolinas and Virginia were preparing for a significant winter storm that could bring more snowfall than some parts of North Carolina have seen in years.

The National Weather Service said arctic air moving into the Southeast will cause already frigid temperatures to plummet into the teens on Friday night in cities like Nashville, Tennessee, where many people still lacked power nearly a week after a massive storm dumped snow and ice across the eastern U.S.

More than 230,000 homes and businesses were without electricity Friday morning, with the vast majority of those outages in Mississippi and Tennessee, according to the outage tracking website poweroutage.us.

Forecasters say the subfreezing weather will persist in the eastern U.S. into February and there’s high chance of heavy snow in the Carolinas, Virginia and northeast Georgia this weekend, possibly up to a foot in parts of North Carolina. Snow is also possible along the East Coast from Maryland to Maine.

Jean Christophe rides his bike home from Kroger on snow and ice in Memphis, Tenn., Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian via AP)
This photo provided by Crystal Walk shows Jeeps helping stranded drivers navigate the ice on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, on Interstate 55 in northern Mississippi. (Crystal Walk via AP)
A smattering of people sit around the Humphreys County warming center in Belzoni, Miss., on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Sophie Bates)
Sherry Miller, who is staying at the Humphreys County warming center, passes the time playing dominoes with others seeking shelter in Belzoni, Miss., on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Sophie Bates)
Jimmy Jordan, left, and Cordarol Dale walk through snow in Memphis, Tenn., Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian via AP)

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Jean Christophe rides his bike home from Kroger on snow and ice in Memphis, Tenn., Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian via AP)

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On Saturday night and early Sunday, forecasters expect intense winds accompanied by moderate to heavy snow that could lead to blizzard conditions for a time before the storm starts to move out to sea Sunday morning.

In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, a beach city more accustomed to hurricanes, traffic jams and tourists, the National Weather Service has predicted 6 inches of snow.

The city has no snow removal equipment. Instead, newly-inaugurated Myrtle Beach Mayor Mark Kruea said they will “use what we can find” — maybe a motor grader or bulldozer to scrape snow off streets.

“With a hurricane you can storm proof many things,” Kruea said Friday. “But at a place like this, there is only a few things you can do to get ready for snow.”

With the wave of dangerous cold heading for the U.S. South on Friday, experts say the risk of hypothermia heightens for people in parts of Mississippi and Tennessee who are entering their sixth day trapped at home without power in subfreezing temperatures.

“The longer you’re exposed to the cold, the worse it is,” said Dr. Hans House, a professor of emergency medicine at the University of Iowa. “The body can handle cold temperatures briefly very well, but the prolonged exposure is a problem.”

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People who are more vulnerable — the elderly, infants and those with underlying health conditions — may have started experiencing hypothermia symptoms within hours of being exposed to the frigid temperatures, explained Dr. Zheng Ben Ma, medical director of the University of Washington Medical Center’s northwest emergency department. That includes everything from exhaustion to slurred speech and memory loss.

But almost a week in and the situation is nearing a turning point, he explained: Younger people who are generally healthy could potentially begin to fall victim to these symptoms as well.

“Once you get into days six, seven, upwards of 10, then even a healthy, resilient person will be more predisposed to experiencing some of those deleterious effects of the cold temperature,” he said.

Mississippi officials say it’s the state’s worst winter storm since 1994. About 80 warming centers were opened across the state, known as one of the nation’s poorest. Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said National Guard troops were delivering meals, blankets and other supplies by truck and helicopter.

In Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee said crews had distributed more than 600 units of warming supplies and more than 2,200 gallons of gas and diesel.

Nashville residents in more than 70,000 powerless homes and businesses were bracing for a frigid weekend forecast, as criticisms grew louder of the local utility’s handling of the prep and recovery. Nashville Electric Service has defended its approach, saying it was an unprecedented storm. At the peak, about half of its customers in and near the capital city lost power.

More than 80 people have died in areas affected by bitter cold from Texas to New Jersey. Roughly half the deaths were reported in Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana. While some deaths have been attributed to hypothermia, others are suspected to be related to carbon monoxide exposure.

Dr. Abhi Mehrotra, an emergency medicine physician with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said it’s important to make sure heat sources used indoors, including generators, are not emitting carbon monoxide, which could be deadly.

Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia, and Thanawala from Atlanta. Associated Press writers Jeff Martin in Atlanta; Jonathan Mattise and Travis Loller in Nashville, Tennessee; Sarah Brumfield in Washington; Devi Shastri in Milwaukee and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report.

30 Jan 2026

In surprising move, Derek Falvey out as Twins president

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In the immediate aftermath of a second consecutive fourth-place finish, the Twins opted to cut ties with manager Rocco Baldelli.

Months later, in December, while announcing the identities of the team’s new minority owners, the Twins replaced executive chair Joe Pohlad with his older brother, Tom.

On Friday, the Twins announced the most surprising change to their leadership structure this offseason, agreeing to “mutually” part ways with president of baseball and business operations Derek Falvey.

“Ownership transitions naturally create moments for reflection and honest dialogue about leadership, vision and how an organization wants to move forward,” Falvey said in a statement. “Over the past several weeks, we had those conversations openly and constructively and ultimately reached a shared understanding that this was the right step for both the organization and for me personally.”

Falvey was hired as the team’s chief baseball officer in October 2016 and was named president of baseball operations in 2019. Last March, he took over as president of baseball and business operations after longtime team president Dave St. Peter stepped aside.

Under Falvey, the Twins won three American League Central division titles and reached the playoffs in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2023. But after that 2023 season, ownership cut payroll dramatically in response to its growing debt, and the Twins suffered a late-season collapse in 2024 and floundered in 2025, leading to a massive trade deadline sell-off.

“His leadership was transformational. He helped modernize every aspect of our baseball operations and led with strong values, intention, and purpose,” Tom Pohlad said in a statement. “Derek created a culture grounded in learning and in the belief that organizations grow when people grow. … We are grateful for his dedication, his integrity, and the impact he made here.”

General manager Jeremy Zoll will lead the baseball department and the Twins will begin a search for a president of business operations immediately. Both will report to Pohlad, who will lead business operations in the interim.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate to spend this chapter of my career with the Minnesota Twins. This organization, the people inside it and Twins Territory have meant a great deal to me and my family,” Falvey said. “I’m grateful for the experiences I’ve had here and excited about the next chapter when the time is right.”

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