Matt Kenseth: Martinsville In Rearview, Bracing For Talladega

Nikola Jokic will spend the last days of his 20s in the Bay Area. Jokic is going to his seventh consecutive NBA All-Star Game in February, the league announced Thursday. Denver’s star center was voted in as one of three Western Conference frontcourt starters. The 2025 game will take place Feb. 16 at Chase Center in San Francisco, capping off a weekend of festivities including the usual slam dunk and 3-point contests.

A peek at the Bo Nix offseason checklist: Talk with Drew Brees, chat with Peyton Manning and study acting. The road to the AFC West title goes through Arrowhead and The Academy. This point was driven home during the divisional round as Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes manipulated the rules to his advantage, enabled by years of suspect enforcement. It was so egregious that ESPN analyst Troy Aikman blurted, “Aww, come on!” after Mahomes lured defenders into a roughing call after he danced around for several seconds and slid late.

It hasn’t been a banner season for the Colorado men’s basketball program, and that extends to the attendance numbers. Yet those who have ventured into the CU Events Center have noticed a curiously incomplete design in the northwest corner of the arena. Gone is the mural commemorating the champions of the 2012 Pac-12 Conference tournament.

Miles Wood has more history with Mackenzie Blackwood than any other member of the Colorado Avalanche. They were teammates for part of one season in the AHL and five years in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils. They’ve been two of the best golfers on every team they’ve played on. Now, six weeks after Blackwood arrived in Denver in a trade, they might finally get to play in an NHL game together again.

After leading the Broncos to their first playoff appearance since the 2015 season, Sean Payton has been named a finalist for the Associated Press Coach of the Year award. Dan Campbell (Lions), Kevin O’Connell (Vikings), Dan Quinn (Commanders) and Andy Reid (Chiefs) were also nominated for the award. The winner will be announced during the NFL Honors on Feb.

By PAT GRAHAM Six weeks ago, Mikaela Shiffrin didn’t have the core strength to even rise out of a chair. A sneeze or a laugh brought on instant pain. That was all due to a serious crash in a giant slalom race on Nov. 30 in Killington, Vermont, where something punctured her in the side — still a mystery — and caused severe trauma to her oblique muscles. It’s been a demanding and difficult road back for the fast-healing Shiffrin, who plans to make her World Cup return at a slalom race in Courchevel, France, next Thursday.