Latest news with #BrianWright
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
The final move San Antonio Spurs must make to complete 2025 NBA offseason
The post The final move San Antonio Spurs must make to complete 2025 NBA offseason appeared first on ClutchPoints. Though the San Antonio Spurs haven't put together the splashiest offseason in the NBA, they haven't stood pat either. While general manager Brian Wright signed big men Luke Kornet and Kelly Olynyk and rounded out the roster with guys like Jordan McClaughlin and Lindy Waters III in free agency thus far, the franchise's biggest splashes came in the draft. With Dylan Harper at the second overall selection, the Spurs added a player expected to contribute immediately. A second lottery pick, Carter Bryant, could also contribute as a rookie. Though he struggled offensively in Summer League, the 14th pick's defense ability may land him minutes early. Include the two-way contract of Spurs' Summer League star David Jones Garcia and San Antonio has one more standard spot and two two-way deals remaining. Two of the organization's two-way players from last year suited up for them in Las Vegas. Riley Minix may very well find his way back to the Silver and Black, while the jury is out on 2024 second-round pick Harrison Ingram. As the Spurs finalize their roster, though, shooting must be prioritized. Spurs in need of marksmen In Victor Wembanyama, De'Aaron Fox, Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle, Harper and Devin Vassell, the Spurs have plenty of guys who can score. And that's not including reserve Keldon Johnson, who averaged 22 points per game three seasons ago and is still just 25 years old. What they lack is knock-down shooters. It's a hole that wasn't addressed on draft night. That's not surprising considering Wright has said the team doesn't pick for need. Harper's strengths comes in his ability to create, pace and his handle. Bryant's gifts are mainly physical at this point. 'What we've tried to do is just put one foot in front of the other, stay head down, and hopefully we look up someday and we're right where we want to be,' Wright said of the team's off-season. Of the two Spurs who return from last season, only veteran Harrison Barnes and McClaughlin shot higher than 40% from three-point range. Acquired in the same February trade for Fox, McClaughlin played sparingly after arriving in the Alamo City. In 18 games, he averaged 2.5 points and 1.5 assists in 6.9 minutes. A six-year NBA veteran, the former USC standout has played in 288 total games with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Sacramento Kings and Spurs, averaging 4.1 points, 2.8 assists and 1.4 rebounds in 14.1 minutes. His potential from beyond the arc may represent a reason the Spurs re-signed him. It's not nearly enough, though. San Antonio had sharpshooters Doug McDermott and Cedi Osman when they drafted Wemby. Surrounding their superstar big men with specialists now that they've added more talent may help bolster their playoff chances this coming season. 'We're not putting the cart before the horse,' Wright said earlier this summer when asked about the team's chances of qualifying for the postseason. 'We've got a lot of work to do over the coming months and coming years, but our hope and goal is to be there as soon as we can be.' For a franchise looking for its first playoff spot since 2019, sooner may go hand-in-hand with more shooting for Wright and the Spurs. Related: Where Chris Paul ranks among Spurs one-and-done players Related: Celtics' Derrick White reveals Gregg Popovich's NSFW message when Spurs traded him
Newsweek
25-07-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
How to Watch HFX Wanderers FC vs Forge FC: Live Stream Canadian Soccer
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Halifax Wanderers will welcome Forge FC to Wanderers Ground on Friday for what promises to be a high-intensity Canadian Premier League fixture. What will happen when these teams face each other in soccer action? Tune in to FOX Soccer Plus on Friday to watch. Brian Wright (L) of Forge and Jorge Rodriguez (R) of Monterrey compete for the ball during a CONCACAF Champions Cup 2025 first round second leg match between Monterrey and Forge FC at BBVA Stadium on... Brian Wright (L) of Forge and Jorge Rodriguez (R) of Monterrey compete for the ball during a CONCACAF Champions Cup 2025 first round second leg match between Monterrey and Forge FC at BBVA Stadium on February 11, 2025 in Monterrey, Mexico. More Photo by Hugo Rivera/How to Watch HFX Wanderers FC vs. Forge FC Date: Friday, July 24, 2025 Time: 6:00 PM EDT Channel: FOX Soccer Plus Stream: Fubo (Try for free) The home side, currently sitting fourth in the league standings with 24 points through 15 games, has had an inconsistent run as of late. The team has two wins, a draw, and two losses over its last five matches. The team suffered a narrow 3‑2 defeat at Pacific FC two weeks ago and followed it up by falling 2‑0 at Ottawa last weekend. On the flip side, Forge FC remains unbeaten through all 15 league games with eight wins and seven draws. That's the team's fourth-best record in club history. Forge has the second‑best defensive record with just 11 goals allowed and has the second-highest goal tally, scoring 26 on the year. Halifax will look to Portuguese forward Tiago Coimbra, who has seven league goals this season, to lead the attacking charge. You can live stream the Canadian Premier League on Fubo, with games airing on FOX Soccer Plus and many more. Start a free trial now to start watching some of the best soccer players in the world hit the pitch. Live stream the HFX Wanderers FC vs. Forge FC game on Fubo: Start your free trial now! Regional restrictions may apply. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.
Newsweek
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
How to Watch CF Montreal vs Forge FC: Live Stream Canadian Championship, TV Channel
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. CF Montreal hosts Forge FC in the 2025 Canadian Championship on Wednesday night in what is the second leg of their quarterfinal matchup. What will happen when these teams face each other in soccer action? Tune in to FOX Sports 2 on Wednesday to watch. Lionel Messi #10 of Inter Miami runs the pitch during the MLS match between CF Montreal and Inter Miami CF at Saputo Stadium on July 5, 2025 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Lionel Messi #10 of Inter Miami runs the pitch during the MLS match between CF Montreal and Inter Miami CF at Saputo Stadium on July 5, 2025 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Photo byHow to Watch CF Montréal vs Forge FC Date: Wednesday, July 9, 2025 Time: 7:00 PM EDT Channel: FOX Sports 2 Stream: Fubo (Try for free) Forge heads to Stade Saputo with a 1-0 lead on aggregate in this quarterfinal tie thanks to Brian Wright's goal back in Hamilton in the first leg on May 20. That gives Forge even more confidence when they traveled to Montréal with the series tied at 1-1. CF Montréal is at the bottom of MLS's Eastern Conference (second-to-last in the whole league) with a 3-5-13 record and a -22 goal differential. On Saturday, they were beaten 4-1 at home by Lionel Messi's Inter Miami. Forge comes into this match in good form, still unbeaten in league play after 13 games. The club beat Vancouver FC, 2-1, at home on Saturday, and sits just one point back of first place in the CPL. This is the fifth consecutive year that Forge and CF Montréal have participated in this competition, and the first three times it's where Forge's journey ended. Last year, Forge finally won and beat a Major League Soccer opponent for the first time in club history. You can live stream the Canadian Championship on Fubo, with games airing on FOX Sports 2. Start a free trial now to start watching some of the best soccer players in the world hit the pitch. Live stream the CF Montreal vs. Forge FC game on Fubo: Start your free trial now! Regional restrictions may apply. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.
Forbes
08-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
From Commitment To Action: Delta Air Lines' Skills-Based Transformation
Thanks to their robust approach to change management, Delta Air Lines has effectively translated their skills-first commitment to action across the large company. Hear from Ebony Thomas of Grads of Life and Brian Wright of Delta about what has gone into their impressive transformation. Getty As a growing number of companies embrace skills-based hiring and talent management, the model is both making headlines and attracting newfound scrutiny. As with many new ideas, the shift to skills-based is easier to describe than to implement. Many employers' enthusiasm about the idea outpaces the speed with which they can change their often-entrenched talent practices. That's what makes effective change management strategies such an important part of employers' skills-first transformation. And any talent leader interested in learning what good change management looks like should look at the work of Delta Air Lines. Delta depends on an intentional and thoughtful approach to ensure they have the very best employees to help connect and serve their more than 200 million customers each year. What sets Delta's strategy apart is their commitment to change management, which enabled them to translate their vision into concrete action — and results. Why Delta Was Ready for Skills-Based Transformation 'At Delta, growing our people has always been a top priority,' says Brian Wright, Director of Global Leadership, Learning & Development. 'Our skills-based approach is really about helping our people grow what they need and want to grow in their careers, move across the company, and perform at a high level. It's not just good for them, it's how we improve the customer experience, run a more efficient operation, and live up to our brand promises every day.' Three years ago, Delta expanded its talent development work by transitioning hiring and development practices to become skills-based. According to the initiative's mission, the goal was to shift 'to what you know from where you learned it,' building on Delta's existing commitment to create new approaches to developing and retaining talent. 'This was a natural transition for us, because we run the ultimate team sport. Delta people learn from Delta people every day, so this transition helped us break out of old assumptions about our peoples' experience and what they can do,' Wright explains. 'It opened the door to valuing real, demonstrated capabilities, whether that comes from a classroom, hands-on experience or somewhere in between.' What enabled Delta to make this transition so effectively was that the company already had some of the key building blocks in place to manage such a significant practice change: From Commitment to Action After its decision to transition to a skills-based organization, Delta made several big changes to put that vision into practice. The company removed degree requirements for over 90% of jobs, opening new career pathways for a broader range of candidates. The company also launched the Delta Analytics Academy, a partnership with Georgia State University, to train frontline employees in advanced analytics skills like data visualization, using platforms such as Python, SQL, and Tableau. This program not only equips participants with skills for more advanced roles but also provides a clear pathway for upward mobility within the company. Some of Delta's existing programs, including its Propel program for aspiring pilots and its apprenticeship program, complemented this work by providing other pathways for employees to gain skills to grow their careers. While great, these programs only served a small few of their over 100,000 employee population. In parallel, Delta introduced the Talent Hub – an internal platform that helps employees strengthen the skills that matter most in their current roles, explore skills they're curious about, and prepare for future opportunities. Whether improving customer communication or learning new leadership skills, employees are empowered to grow where they are and how they choose. Talent Hub is being designed to improve performance, elevate the employee experience, and support a stronger, more agile workforce across Delta. In tandem with launching Talent Hub, Delta is investing in AI-powered tools and platforms to personalize development and drive performance at scale. Delta is also currently enhancing Talent Hub with AI to recommend learning, skill growth areas, and internal opportunities tailored to each employee's role, goals, and skills and proficiency levels, creating a more intuitive, skills-connected experience across the enterprise. 'We're designing for performance and personalization at scale,' says Stephanie Asbury, Chief Talent Officer. 'That means giving every employee, whether you're on the ramp or work in revenue management, the tools to see where they are, grow where they want, and impact what matters.' Delta is also scaling coaching skills to its leaders, through 'Nadia,' an AI coaching platform enabled to help more effectively coach their teams, while modeling Delta's values. 'Nadia puts coaching in the hands of every leader in our business, even if they're 10 gates away from their desks,' says Asbury. 'It reflects how we want to lead – rooted in our values, digitally enabled, performance focused, and grounded in how our operation actually runs.' Beyond tools, Delta is building critical workforce skills to accelerate digital transformation and enhance the customer experience. These efforts focus on upskilling in areas key to designing and improving the products and services that matter most to customers. 'Delta's frontline employees have a wealth of experience serving our customers and understanding their needs,' said Allison Ausband, Chief People Officer. 'That depth of experience combined with modern technical skills allows our decision making at every level of the company to take meaningful action in response to what we hear from our people and our customers. That powers better results for our business so that we can continue to invest in our people.' Along the way, the team at Grads of Life was grateful for the chance to both learn from and support Delta's skills-based journey. It was a pleasure to leverage our tools and expertise to contribute to their impactful efforts. Leaning into the company's commitment to effective change management, our work focused on helping them implement their comprehensive talent transformation in the 'Delta way:' involving a broad range of stakeholders, working collaboratively, iterating constantly with deliverables, and developing tailored messaging for different levels of the organization to help them tell their story as effectively as possible. Of course, as successful as Delta's approach has been, the shift wasn't without its challenges. Some employees initially worried that focusing on skills might undervalue the degrees they had worked hard to earn, a common change management challenge among skills-first employers. By emphasizing that skills complement traditional credentials in decision making, rather than replace them, Delta was able to address concerns directly, maintain employee trust, and reinforce the importance of hiring merit-based, top talent to continue best serving the airline's global customers, communities and each other. 'Our slogan is 'Keep Climbing,' so our people know that success doesn't stop when you reach the destination – it's just the beginning. Traditional credentials show us the path you've taken and your commitment. Successfully demonstrating the skills you've learned – regardless of where you learned it – shows us you can perform, and performance is what drives our business,' said Wright. Delta's adoption of skills-based principles demonstrates how even large global companies, with a strong foundation and a thoughtful change management plan, can transform how they develop and recognize talent. 'This is how we create value: Investing in our people allows them to give the very best to our customers and drive business success,' adds Ausband. 'Our skills-based journey is about career mobility, yes - but it's also about building confidence, clarity and high performance in every role.' By drawing on the support of its leadership and a commitment to collaboration across teams, Delta is showing how large organizations can lead the way in building a more skills-driven, performance focused culture - where people grow, customers benefit, and the business thrives.
Yahoo
06-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
San Antonio Spurs Free Agency Signing is Not Perfect Fix to Problems
San Antonio Spurs Free Agency Signing is Not Perfect Fix to Problems originally appeared on Athlon Sports. If you're active in San Antonio Spurs-based social media platforms, you might have seen posts suggesting that Luke Kornet is somehow the second coming of David Robinson and no one aside from the Spurs sees the vision. Advertisement This is not a Kornet hit piece, although at the end of the day, he is a career backup who will continue to be simply a backup. Last season, the best of his career, saw him post six points and 5.3 rebounds, and the Spurs are now committed to him through the next four seasons. Granted, it's a tradeable contract, but an eighth man is not exactly a massive asset to have. He is signed through his age-33 season, which means the Spurs should be able to avoid his decline, although that is not guaranteed. Fans were rightfully thrilled for Victor Wembanyama to finally have a competent backup, but we've all heard this song. Zach Collins was supposed to be a stellar backup, as were Charles Bassey and Sandro Mamukelashvili. Advertisement Brian Wright is a very good executive, and the Spurs got Kornet on a value, but keep in mind that he was the third-string center on the Boston Celtics behind Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis. The Silver and Black glasses make it hard for some fans to admit that there were better options on the market that the Spurs simply didn't land, like Brook Lopez, Clint Capela, and even Kevon Looney. While Kornet is certainly a capable backup big, it remains true that if Wembanyama goes down for an extended period, this team is simply not talented enough to compete. Check out the Inside the Spurs home page for more news, analysis, and must-read articles. Related: San Antonio Spurs' Rookie Carter Bryant Compares Himself to Overlooked All-Star Related: Spurs' Rookie Dylan Harper Follows Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle's Footsteps This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
