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Morning Edition

February 24, 2025

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The NFL Combine has grown into a cornerstone NFL event and a huge part of the league’s offseason calendar. Despite 38 years of history, however, Indianapolis is far from a given to remain the permanent host.

— David Rumsey [[link removed]] and Colin Salao [[link removed]]

Indianapolis ‘Fighting’ to Keep NFL Combine With Future Uncertain

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The NFL Scouting Combine takes place this week in downtown Indianapolis, where the event has been held every year since 1987. Indianapolis wants to keep it that way long-term—but as the annual gathering of top draft prospects continues to grow, that’s no longer a guarantee.

In 2021, the league began allowing other cities to bid on hosting the combine, as it does for the Super Bowl and NFL Draft, and requiring Indianapolis to do the same. The current contract for Lucas Oil Stadium and the adjacent Indiana Convention Center to host runs through next year’s edition. And even though Indianapolis is popular among almost all regular combine attendees, anything is on the table for 2027 and beyond.

If the combine were to move or rotate, plenty of NFL markets with indoor venues could theoretically make sense as hosts:

Atlanta Dallas Detroit Houston Las Vegas Los Angeles Minneapolis Nashville (new stadium opening 2027) New Orleans Phoenix

At last year’s combine, the NFL hosted officials from Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Nashville, and Phoenix to discuss hosting a future edition. But the league isn’t trying to make any news about the combine’s future this week.

“We understand there are a number of markets interested in exploring hosting the event,” an NFL spokesperson told Front Office Sports. “Our focus is on staging a successful combine in Indianapolis [this] week and in 2026.”

Indy Tradition

After the NFL’s shift in strategy in 2021, Visit Indy, the city’s tourism authority, started working with the Indiana Sports Corp, a local nonprofit, to beef up its NFL combine bidding efforts.

Indiana Sports Corp president Patrick Talty told FOS that while there are “always discussions happening,” formal talks about 2027 and beyond are still yet to come. “We’ve been working so hard and fighting so hard to keep it that we haven’t really talked about the ‘what if,’” Talty said when asked about the potential of Indianapolis losing the combine.

But Talty understands why the NFL is shopping the event around. “They also have a duty to make sure that they’re putting the events in the right places and getting the best leverage out of their assets,” he said.

The Contenders Are …

With the combine potentially up for grabs, officials from Houston and Minneapolis expressed specific interest in hosting when contacted by FOS, but made it clear that the combine isn’t their first choice for major NFL events.

Read the full story [[link removed]], including more details on which cities are in and out of the running for future combines, from FOS newsletter writer David Rumsey.

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Sinking Sixers Will Soon Face $300M Joel Embiid Dilemma [[link removed]]

Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

On Saturday night, Nets center Nic Claxton sank a miracle putback [[link removed]] in the closing seconds of a tied game against the Sixers, lifting Brooklyn to a win.

A quick look at the court in dying moments shows that Claxton grabbed the game-winning offensive rebound over the Sixers’ 6-foot-8 forward Paul George—and not Philadelphia’s 7-foot-2 former MVP center Joel Embiid. And it wasn’t because Embiid—who has missed nearly two-thirds of the team’s games this year—was injured.

Embiid was benched in the fourth quarter by Sixers coach Nick Nurse, who after the game, explained that the 2022–2023 NBA MVP is clearly not 100%. “He’s not himself, we all know that. He’s not certainly the guy we’re used to seeing, playing at a super high level. But, I commend him for giving us what he can,” Nurse said.

Saturday’s loss was the Sixers’ seventh in a row and they fell to 12th in the East, behind Brooklyn. But the Sixers continue to trot out their star whenever possible in what appears to be an attempt to chase the 10th seed and a play-in berth [[link removed]].

A postseason appearance would barely salvage a season in which Philadelphia was supposed to challenge for the Eastern Conference throne, and the Sixers now have to decide whether a core with Embiid as the centerpiece makes sense—or attempt to move their longtime cornerstone to build around young star Tyrese Maxey.

Until The Wheels Fall Off

The Sixers are tied up to this core unless they decide to pull the trigger and trade Embiid and George. The two stars and Maxey combine to make about 90% of the league’s salary cap every year until the 2027–2028 season [[link removed]].

But even if Philadelphia decides to cut its losses and move on, the franchise may not find any takers in the market for two aging, injury-prone stars.

Embiid, who has only played about half of all possible regular-season games since he was drafted in 2014, signed a three-year, $192 million extension that will keep him under contract through the 2028–2029 season [[link removed]]. His entire deal runs for five years, including this season, and is worth $299.5 million. He will be 35 years old at the end of the contract.

George looked like a dream signing when the Sixers inked him to a four-year, $211.6 million contract [[link removed]] last offseason, but he is having one of the worst seasons of his career. The final year of his contract is in 2027–2028, when he will be 37.

Philadelphia may be better off hoping the two find health in the offseason and trying to win against next year—or else they may have to sell them off for cents on the dollar.

Fresno State Investigated as 2 Players Reportedly Bet on Own Games [[link removed]]

Brian Losness-Imagn Images

The NCAA and Fresno State are investigating the Bulldogs men’s basketball team due to potential sports gambling activity. The Fresno Bee first reported that the school was conducting an internal investigation [[link removed]], and ESPN later reported the NCAA’s involvement [[link removed]].

The Bulldogs initially suspended two men’s basketball players—Jalen Weaver and Zaon Collins—ahead of their game Saturday against Air Force. A third player, Mykell Robinson, is also being investigated, according to The Fresno Bee. Robinson has not played since Jan. 11 and had already been removed from the team’s roster.

According to ABC30 Fresno sports anchor Alec Nolan, Weaver, and Robinson were allegedly betting on prop bets involving the Bulldogs, including the under on points total and rebounds [[link removed]]. Weaver has also already been removed from the team [[link removed]]. Collins was allegedly betting on other sports and not Bulldogs games. His status with the team is still unclear.

The three players under investigation were three of the Bulldogs’ top five scorers [[link removed]]. Fresno State has a 5–23 record and has lost a program-record 10 games in a row.

In a statement, Fresno State said the two are “being withheld from competition as the university reviews an eligibility matter.” There are no details about the potential involvement of any of the three players, including whether they placed bets themselves or provided information to bettors.

The investigation comes less than a month after the Wall Street Journal reported that federal prosecutors were investigating NBA guard Terry Rozier [[link removed]] following unusual betting patterns surrounding one of his games from two years ago when he was still a member of the Hornets. The NBA had already investigated Rozier at the time and did not find him to have any wrongdoing.

The NBA and MLB have each handed out lifetime bans for sports gambling in the last 12 months. Former Raptor Jontay Porter received a lifetime ban in April [[link removed]] for what the league described as “disclosing confidential information to sports bettors, limiting his own participation in one or more games, and betting on NBA games.” Former Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano received a lifetime ban last June [[link removed]] after it was determined that he placed hundreds of bets on baseball, including on his own team.

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Status Report Two Up, Two Down

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Spurs ⬇ Days after the team announced that Victor Wembanyama would miss the rest of the season with a blood clot [[link removed]], ESPN reported that head coach Gregg Popovich is not expected to return this season. It is unclear whether the 76-year-old coach, who suffered a stroke in November, will be able to return to the sidelines. Popovich has more career wins than any coach in league history.

Arizona fans ⬇ The school issued an apology after its fans chanted “Fuck the Mormons” following BYU’s upset win over the Cougars, 96–95, on Saturday. “On behalf of the University of Arizona Athletic Department, we apologize to BYU, their student-athletes, coaches and fans,” Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois said in a statement [[link removed]].

Jai Lucas ⬆ The Duke associate head coach has agreed to a deal to become the next head coach at Miami [[link removed]], according to the Associated Press. Details of the contract have yet to be finalized, including when Lucas would leave the Blue Devils, given that No. 3 Duke is expected to contend for a national championship while the 6–21 Hurricanes’ year will likely end after their regular-season finale on Mar. 8.

Mirra Andreeva ⬆ The Russian rising tennis star won the Dubai Tennis Championships on Sunday to become the youngest player ever to win a WTA 1000 tournament at 17 years, 299 days. Andreeva will take home $597,000 in winnings—but said the money will have to be sent to her father because she is not even old enough to have a bank account. She will rise from World No. 14 to No. 9 in the WTA rankings.

Conversation Starters Serena Williams took an incredible tennis career and built it into a $340 miillion business empire. Learn how on the latest episode of FOS Explains [[link removed]]. Maryland Eastern Shore snapped a 55-game losing streak spanning two seasons with a win Saturday over Towson. Check out [[link removed]] the winning moment. Take a look [[link removed]] at the line of fans who waited an hour after the UConn–Butler women’s basketball game to see the Huskies and Paige Bueckers. Editors’ Picks Boston Globe CEO Linda Henry Leaves NWSL Ownership Group [[link removed]]by Austin Green [[link removed]]The group’s stadium plan has been mired in controversy and blowback. Stephen A. Smith Has Fourth-Best Gambling Odds To Be 2028 Democratic Presidential Nominee [[link removed]]by Ryan Glasspiegel [[link removed]]Smith has about 7% implied odds on prediction market Kalshi. Jersey Victor Wembanyama Gave to Child Sells for $73K [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]Wembanyama went viral with a young fan after swapping jerseys in December. Question of the Day

Should Indianapolis remain the sole location for the NFL Combine?

Yes [[link removed]] No, it's time for a rotation [[link removed]]

Friday’s result: 22% of respondents plan on attending MLS games this season.

Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Shows [[link removed]] Written by David Rumsey [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]] Edited by Or Moyal [[link removed]]

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