LOS ANGELES — The Lakers lost to the Orlando Magic 110-109 on Tuesday after a botched sidelines out-of-bounds play between LeBron James and Luka Doncic in the final seconds failed to produce a quality shot.

After Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. scored on a putback with 6.7 seconds remaining to put Orlando up one, L.A. called timeout. On the ensuing play, James passed the ball to an open Doncic, who caught it on the left wing beyond the 3-point line but opted not to shoot.

“I know I was open, but I just thought I was a little bit far,” Doncic said. “Tried to take one dribble closer. And I probably shouldn’t have picked up the ball and just tried to attack.”

Once he stopped his dribble, Doncic was immediately double-teamed by the Magic’s Paolo Banchero and Anthony Black. He paused, pivoted and passed the ball back to James, who was covered by Orlando’s Jonathan Isaac on the wing.

James caught the pass with 2.9 seconds left, turned away from Isaac and shot a 27-foot fadeaway 3-pointer that missed at the buzzer.

“I thought he had a good look, and it looked like he kind of just lost his balance,” James said when asked for an explanation of what broke down. “Didn’t have a rhythm with the ball, whatever the case may be. And it kind of allowed [Orlando’s defense] to get back in front of him. And I was kind of off-balance when he gave it to me. I thought he had a great look. That’s my POV.”

Doncic, who was 8-for-24 for the game and 2-for-10 from 3, was asked if his shooting struggles entered his mind when he turned down the initial shot.

“Maybe a little bit,” he said. “I think I thought it was more time. It was, what, six, seven seconds. It was enough time to get a better look, try to drive the ball, so that’s why I picked [up my dribble].”

Doncic said he did not speak to James about the play after the game.

When asked if he believed James would have a good shot to win it when he passed it, Doncic — who had a season-high 15 assists — said he thought James did.

“I mean, I just saw him open, and I didn’t want to lose the ball,” Doncic said. “We didn’t have timeouts. … [But] I shouldn’t have picked up the ball. I should have attacked. … That’s on me.”

The inbounds play was one of several missed opportunities that caused L.A. to blow a 12-point second-half lead and lose for the first time all season when leading after three quarters after being 25-0.

James missed a free throw with 44.7 seconds left that would have put L.A. up by 3, and Orlando’s Desmond Bane made a 3 on the next possession to give the Magic a one-point lead.

After Banchero missed a pull-up shot with 10.5 seconds remaining with L.A. up by one, the Lakers failed to secure the defensive rebound, leading to Carter’s go-ahead putback.

The loss to Orlando dropped the Lakers’ record to 4-4 over their eight-game homestand. They head on the road to play the Phoenix Suns on Thursday followed by the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.

“It’s a bit upsetting,” Lakers center Deandre Ayton said of the home losses. “We still got a lot of chances to just get in as good of a position as we can. Did feel weird in the homestand, just being 4-4. It was tough losses and played against some really good teams. But … just get back in the lab and just get ready for the next game.”

This is shaping up to be one of the great Premier League seasons. The title race looks set to go the distance, the battle for Europe is heating up and the relegation scrap is wonderfully poised. Last weekend, we saw Spurs slip closer to the mire, Arsenal and Manchester City continue pushing the pace at the top, and the battle for Champions League places remain hotly contested. We also witnessed notable performances from strikers Viktor Gyökeres and Raúl Jiménez.

There are plenty of takes around after the weekend, and ahead of the next batch of fixtures — like we’ve done with NFL and rugby union — we look at some snap judgements before weighing up whether they are overreactions or legit takes.

Let’s start with the battle for the title.

Jump to:
Man City, Arsenal title race will go down to wire?
Spurs in relegation battle?
Chelsea least disciplined side in PL history?
Gyökeres has lived up to transfer fee?
Jiménez one of PL’s great stories?

The title race will go down to the wire

Manchester City are five points and a game in hand behind Arsenal with three months to go. The Gunners stuttered against Wolves last Wednesday in a 2-2 draw, then demolished Tottenham 4-1 on Sunday. It’s developed into the classic game of cat and mouse.

Verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION

You can reduce this title race to a handful of words: If either team wins its remaining matches, it will claim the Premier League. The date to circle is April 18, when Arsenal travel to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City, but you can expect many twists and turns until we get our eventual winner.

Arsenal have been in the driver’s seat for much of the season, but the ghosts of near-misses are peering over their shoulder. Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola’s Man City have title-winning acumen throughout. In mid-January, Arsenal had a eight-point lead. Then came the draws at Brentford and Wolves, which opened the door for City. They strode straight through it, getting a late win over Liverpool, easing past Fulham, then hurdling Newcastle United last weekend on the back of Nico O’Reilly‘s pair of goals. Guardiola said his team would celebrate that 2-1 win with a cocktail or two. But Arsenal responded, obliterating rivals Spurs.

Opta still gives Arsenal a 82.8% chance of winning the league, predicting them to finish six or so points ahead of City. But the stats don’t account for the psychological aspect. Arsenal had an eight-point lead in April 2023, but ended up surrendering the title to Manchester City just a month later. It is going to be a fascinating, but excruciating, end of the season for the two teams.

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Spurs are in the thick of the relegation battle

Too good to go down? Perhaps not. After their derby defeat to Arsenal on Sunday, Tottenham are in a precarious situation, sitting in 16th and just four points out of the relegation places.

Verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION

Tottenham’s injury list is extensive: Wilson Odobert, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus, Ben Davies, Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie, Kevin Danso and Pedro Porro are all sidelined. Cristian Romero is suspended. They’ve also had to navigate relentless upheaval behind the scenes. And amid all of that, they’ve forgotten how to win; their last league victory was against Crystal Palace on Dec. 28. Oh, and they also have Europe in the equation.

New Spurs manager Igor Tudor has played one, lost one in the Premier League, but says he is 100% convinced Spurs will be a Premier League team next season. Regardless of what he thinks will happen, Spurs are in a relegation scrap. Worryingly, West Ham United and Nottingham Forest are showing signs of improvement and resilient beneath them.

Spurs look low on confidence: These are players who are accustomed to playing in Europe and trying to reach the summit, not scrapping around at the base of the league. Tudor is well versed in getting top players to think his way, and he has managed big clubs (Juventus, Lazio, Marseille) to then steer them through choppy waters, but this could be his greatest ask yet.

Key to survival will be their ability to rally and fight for one another. Take this from Jarrod Bowen after West Ham’s 0-0 draw with Bournemouth: “That’s a pleasing thing in the changing room when you can look around and say: ‘He’s got my back and I’ve got his.'” Can the same be said for Spurs?

Leeds, West Ham and Nottingham Forest are ready to battle. Spurs must start landing some punches of their own.

Chelsea are the most undisciplined side in Premier League history

Chelsea’s disciplinary record is truly grim. They picked up their sixth red card of the Premier League season in their 1-1 draw with Burnley on Saturday, with Wesley Fofana getting sent off for two yellows. At this point, the league record for red cards is not that far out of reach.

Verdict: OVERREACTION

We looked at Chelsea’s discipline back on Dec. 2 and whether it would cost them a Champions League spot. Back then, coach Enzo Maresca looked settled, and Chelsea were finding a way to grind matches out with 10 men. We said it wasn’t yet an issue that would scuttle their season, but they needed to sort it quickly.

Well, it’s still a major problem. Chelsea have lost 17 points from winning positions this term, and it happened again against Burnley as they conceded a 93rd-minute equalizer, with Zian Flemming heading home. But their red cards are not helping in the least. On Saturday, Wesley Fofana’s red made it nine total in all competitions (if you count Maresca’s against Liverpool in October). They’ve won just one of the six league matches in which they’ve had a player sent off.

But the Premier League record? Chelsea still have a way to go. Sunderland (2009-10) and QPR (2011-12) managed nine red cards, so they hold the record for the poorest discipline. It would take a lot for them to reach that unenviable mark.

It’s one of the unwanted habits that has crossed from Maresca’s tenure into Liam Rosenior’s. Chelsea have a young squad, but that’s not the sole reason for blame. “We need players you can rely on in the moment to do their job,” Rosenior said. “I know what we need to get there. It’s not down to youth; it’s down to assessing the players and identifying the ones you can rely on in difficult moments.”

Viktor Gyökeres has finally filled his Arsenal shirt

Gyökeres put in arguably his finest performance for Arsenal in the North London derby, scoring a second-half brace. As the Gunners chase their first title since 2003, Gyökeres might finally be living up to his $74 million transfer fee after making the move from Sporting CP last summer.

Verdict: OVERREACTION

In addition to his two wonderful goals, Gyökeres linked well with Bukayo Saka coming off the right wing, and was generally an immense nuisance down Spurs’ left side. His runs also created space for others, drawing defenders away. While he sometimes struggles in holding the ball up, his lethal form in front of goal was what Arsenal fans have been waiting for.

He has faced frequent challenges to his spot in the side. There was that spell when manager Mikel Arteta favored Mikel Merino as a false nine, and Gabriel Jesus‘ return added a further threat. With Arsenal in the driver’s seat of the title race, though, it’s Gyökeres’ shirt to lose. He’s scored more goals across all competitions than any other player in the Premier League in 2026.

But to say he’s finally living up to his transfer fee is premature, as he now faces the challenge of backing it up across the remaining 10 matches of the season. He’s rightly receiving praise for his performance last weekend, but he needs to show consistency over the coming weeks.

Raul Jiménez is one of the Premier League’s great stories

Jiménez suffered a fractured skull in November 2020 and after eight months of rehabilitation, he returned to action the next summer. Since joining Fulham from Wolverhampton Wanderers in June 2023 for a fee of $6.4 million, he has proved to be one of the best signings in Premier League history, with his brace for Fulham in their 3-1 win at Sunderland on Sunday the latest evidence.

Verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION

The Jiménez who arrived at Fulham in 2023 was still finding his feet in the sport after that horrific injury. “He was not in a good moment in his career,” Fulham manager Marco Silva said postmatch Sunday. That’s no surprise given doctors told Jiménez he was lucky to be alive.

In his final season for Wolves, Jiménez scored just three Carabao Cup goals. But Fulham believed they could nurture him back to his best. “We showed the confidence that we are capable for him to get to his best level,” Silva said. “We hope there is more to come. For a striker that we signed at the price we signed, he is doing very, very well.”

Jiménez’s brace gave Fulham a priceless win at Sunderland. It’s safe to argue that he must be one of the best points-per-pound acquisitions in the top flight. He has eight league goals this term, after chipping in with 12 last year and seven the season previous. With Rodrigo Muniz having missed so much of this season through injury, Jiménez has been leading the line.

While he doesn’t have the same pace we saw when he broke through for Wolves back in 2018, he still has that lethal touch in front of goal. His first against Sunderland saw him head home unmarked a corner, and his second was a calmly taken penalty. He’s 34 now, and heading into the twilight of his career, but his influence has not diminished.

Spring training camps are underway, which means it is time to look at the state of baseball. As part of our 2026 MLB season preview, ESPN’s Buster Olney surveyed those around the industry to help him rank the top 10 players at every position as part of his annual positional ranking series.

Today, we rank the best of the best at shortstop.

The objective of this exercise is to identify the best players for the 2026 season, not who might be best in five years or over their career. We will roll out a position per day over the next two weeks. Here’s the rest of the schedule: starting pitchers (Feb. 16), relief pitchers (Feb. 17), catchers (Feb. 18), first basemen (Feb. 19), second basemen (Feb. 20), third basement (Monday), corner outfielders (Wednesday), center fielders (Thursday), designated hitters (Friday).

Cal Ripken Jr. seemed to break the mold for what shortstops could do offensively, hitting home runs and winning two MVP Awards while playing Gold Glove-caliber defense. Later, the trio of Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Nomar Garciaparra was referred to as the Holy Trinity of Shortstops because they were outliers in how good they were offensively.

Those stars paved the way for this era, in which players at this position are more likely than not to excel as hitters. In the NFL, it’s really hard to win without a good quarterback, and in MLB, few teams are satisfied with good-fielding, light-hitting shortstops anymore. Consider those who just missed out on the top 10 list below: Jacob Wilson, who flirted with a batting title; Dansby Swanson, a metronome of production; Willy Adames, who signed a $182 million contract with San Francisco just last winter; Andres Gimenez, who helped Toronto reach the World Series; and Masyn Winn, who might be the big leagues’ second-best defensive shortstop.

This position is loaded in this golden age of shortstops, who are producing more offense than at any time in history. ESPN’s Paul Hembekides dug up these numbers: In 2024, shortstops accounted for 20.4% of position-player fWAR — the highest rate in history. Look at the increasing share of offense generated by shortstops over the last half-century:

1975: 6.0%
1985: 8.5%
1995: 7.8%
2005: 13.1%
2015: 10.6%
2025: 18.4%

Teams are more focused than ever on drafting and developing and/or acquiring high-end shortstops. Look at some of the players currently in the prospect pipeline: Pittsburgh’s Konnor Griffin, Detroit’s Kevin McGonigle, Seattle’s Colt Emerson, George Lombard Jr. of the Yankees and Leo De Vries of the Athletics. Last year, New York’s Anthony Volpe hit 19 homers; this year, he’s playing for his job. Nick Allen did a great imitation of Mark Belanger for Atlanta last year — he played really good defense but didn’t hit much — and the Braves still traded for one shortstop candidate, Mauricio Dubon, and signed another, Ha-seong Kim. They simply could not live with Allen’s 55 OPS+; they went to find another quarterback.

Shortstops are better than ever. Here are the top 10 in 2026.

Top 10 shortstops

1. Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals

He checks every box — elite defense, the kind of hitter who can anchor a lineup, power and lots of speed. After a 9.4 WAR season in 2024, he generated 7.1 last season, which was third most in the American League and would’ve been enough to lead National League position players. Witt led the majors in hits (184) and doubles (47) in 2025. He also had the best defensive metrics of any shortstop and swiped 38 bases in 47 attempts.

And Witt’s drive to improve is relentless. J.J. Picollo, the head of baseball operations for the Royals, wrote in a text, “[Witt] is so easy to deal with because he takes such good care of himself that we have little-to-no concern. More of what we discuss with him is how we can keep him fresh and strong throughout the season.

“Some of the finer points of base stealing are things that are always being discussed, but he is clearly a very good baserunner.”

He is clearly very good at everything.

2. Geraldo Perdomo, Arizona Diamondbacks

Shohei Ohtani has an enormous advantage in the annual NL MVP conversation because of his two-way skills, but if you were to draw up a list of if-not-Shohei candidates, Perdomo would be in the mix. He led all NL position players in WAR last season with 7.0, excelling offensively and defensively and posting an adjusted OPS of 139. The Diamondbacks have loved his progression as a leader as well.

Perdomo’s main area of growth in 2025, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo wrote in a text, “was from the offensive side. Balanced out his [left-right] splits. Maintained great plate discipline while improving his slug.”

“The sky is the limit with him because of his aptitude and willingness to keep learning. He has a massive understanding of what the game inside the game looks like, and thinks like a manager.”

3. Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles

His start mirrored Baltimore’s rough first month to the 2025 season, but in the end, Henderson followed up his monster 2024 performance with a 5.3 WAR season, hitting 17 homers and swiping 30 bases. He is likely to benefit from the upgrades made in the Baltimore lineup — most notably, Pete Alonso. As is the case with shortstops, his performance last year could sometimes be a barometer for how the O’s fared.

In Baltimore’s wins, Henderson’s triple-slash line: .331/.417/.559

In losses, his slash line: .226/.287/.338

4. Francisco Lindor, New York Mets

One of the most important questions for the 2026 Mets is how quickly Lindor can bounce back from his hamate surgery and regain strength in his hand — because they will need his run production. We should take at face value his optimism about being ready for Opening Day, since what his managers and coaches have learned about Lindor during the course of his career is that he posts as well as anyone in the game, playing through discomfort or nagging injuries. He has missed just 15 games in the past four seasons, during which his offense was remarkably consistent:

2022: 125 OPS+
2023: 121 OPS+
2024: 137 OPS+
2025: 129 OPS+

5. Corey Seager, Texas Rangers

Seager is very different from Lindor in that he tends to miss a lot of games — he was out for 60 last year, and he has reached 135 games on the season only once in the past eight years. But when he plays, he is a difference-maker: He generated 6.2 WAR in 102 games last season and has averaged a 139 OPS+ over the past eight. The Rangers might bear more injury worry than just about any other franchise, with Seager, Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom some of their core players — so they don’t have a lot of margin for error. They desperately need Seager to stay in the lineup.

6. Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies

Last year, Phillies manager Rob Thomson asked Turner to focus more on getting on base and less on power — and that worked very well. His 5.2 WAR was the second-best figure of his career, and he reached base with hits and walks 222 times, winning the NL batting title along the way. Philadelphia has gotten value for dollars with Turner; in his three years with the team, he has scored 284 runs and owns a .287/.337/.461 slash line.

7. Jeremy Peña, Houston Astros

With Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa slowing down, and with Yordan Alvarez seemingly fighting injuries all the time, Peña has become the bedrock of this team out of necessity — and he continues to grow in that role. He had the best season of his career in 2025, hitting .304/.363/.477 while continuing to play well defensively. The Astros are quickly nearing a crossroads with the 28-year-old, who will be eligible for free agency following the 2027 season. Houston owner Jim Crane has made it clear he’s not interested in contracts beyond six years in length, and with Peña growing into a star, it might take more than that to retain him.

8. Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers

He willed himself to becoming an above-average defensive shortstop last year, leading all shortstops in defensive runs saved (17), and added another chapter to his Hall of Fame career. Betts, 33, should be a unanimous selection when his name appears on the ballot, but he has miles to go before that happens. Betts has already accumulated 75.2 WAR, which ranks 50th all time, and this year, he’s likely to climb over guys on the WAR leaderboard who’ve already made speeches in Cooperstown — Paul Molitor, Ozzie Smith, Robin Yount, Brooks Robinson and Joe DiMaggio are all within range. (Plus hit king Pete Rose, who finished with 79.6 WAR.)

9. Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati Reds

Last year, he stole 37 bases, clubbed 22 homers and scored 102 runs… and yet there continues to be a feeling that he has more to offer, that the best is yet to come from the dynamic 24-year-old. But that mostly needs to come from his defense — he really struggled down the stretch in 2025 and led the majors in errors for the second consecutive year. A ranking this high is still based on potential, because there are other more reliable shortstops — like Swanson, or Winn — but De La Cruz is still young, with an important year of development ahead.

10. Willy Adames, San Francisco Giants

His batting average hovered in the low .200s for a lot of last season, and the Giants’ investment in him did not pay off in the standings. But Adames finished with 30 homers and an OPS+ of 111, and his second half offered promise of better play ahead — he hit 18 of his homers after the All-Star break and had an .828 OPS.

Honorable mentions

Dansby Swanson, Chicago Cubs: He wasn’t the hitter that Wilson was last year, he doesn’t steal bases like De La Cruz, and he doesn’t have the power of Zach Neto. But Swanson stays on the field — he has missed a total of 33 games in the past five years — and hits enough to be dangerous, with 24 homers, 20 stolen bases and 84 runs scored for 4.5 WAR last year.

Jacob Wilson, Athletics: His hitting style is unusual, with the pre-swing movement he has, but the results are there — in his age-23 season in 2025, he batted .311/.355/.444, collecting 151 hits in 126 games and prompting the A’s to invest a seven-year contract in him.

Zach Neto, Los Angeles Angels: With the franchise struggling, the Angels have pushed their top prospects to the big leagues, and with Neto, it’s worked out — he’s generated 10.2 WAR over the past two seasons. He had 26 homers and 26 steals in just 128 games last year.

Trevor Story, Boston Red Sox: He had his best offensive season in Boston, playing in 157 games and hitting 26 homers. But some rival evaluators felt his throwing was a bit off at the end of the 2025 season.

Andres Gimenez, Toronto Blue Jays: He was hurt for a lot of last year, but when Bo Bichette got hurt last September and Gimenez had to move from second base to shortstop, Toronto’s infield defense got a whole lot better.

Masyn Winn, St. Louis Cardinals: This is a big year for Winn, as he defines his place in the game; for now, he’s defense first, ranking second among all shortstops last season in FanGraphs’ overall defense metric. His OPS+ was 104 in 2024 and dropped to 90 last year, but he’s still just 23 years old.

Colson Montgomery, Chicago White Sox: He got everyone’s attention last year with 21 homers in his first 71 games in the big leagues, for an OPS+ of 130. Montgomery strikes out a ton, with 83 last year, and his history suggests that’s probably going to be part of his game, along with the high-impact damage he does at the plate.

CJ Abrams, Washington Nationals: Some context for Washington’s willingness to discuss him in possible deals over the winter — metrics indicate he was a below-average defender and is average in getting on base (.315 last season), with some power and excellent skills in running the bases. The timing of his ascension might not match that of the Washington rebuild.