Monthly Archives: April 2022

All eyes are on AT&T's (T) WarnerMedia spinoff with Discovery (DISCA).

"This is going to be the most exciting story in the sector for the next few years," Jessica Reif, research analyst at Bank of America, confidently told Yahoo Finance.

The telecom giant revealed it will issue a special dividend to shareholders on April 5 when they can decide whether to own just AT&T, the soon-to-be Warner Bros. Discovery, or both.

AT&T's WarnerMedia will represent 71% of Warner Bros. Discover, and its shareholders will receive an estimated 0.24 shares of the new joint venture for each share of AT&T that they own once the transaction closes.

WarnerBros. Discovery, which is set to trade on the Nasdaq (^IXIC) under the ticker symbol "WBD," will be run by Discovery CEO David Zaslav, with Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels serving as the new company's CFO.

On Tuesday, it was revealed that WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar will depart once the merger closes, according to an internal memo. Kilar, who co-founded Hulu, was appointed by AT&T to run WarnerMedia in April 2020.

"With the pending transaction with Discovery nearing close, now is the right time to share with each of you that I will be departing this amazing company," Kilar wrote.

"There are many feelings one could have in a moment like this, but for me there are none bigger, or more lasting, than the feelings of gratitude and love that I have for this team, this company, and this mission. Ive never been more fulfilled professionally. Ive never been happier professionally," he continued.

This is probably going to be the broadest offering the market has yet to see...Jessica Reif, Bank of America Research Analyst

Bank of America's Reif, who previously wrote that "the combination of these highly complementary assets, has the potential to create a global media powerhouse," further explained how the new entity will disrupt the market.

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"If you step back, this is probably going to be the broadest offering the market has yet to see," Reif stated, emphasizing the immense advertising potential that could result, in addition to the company's ability to optimize content spend, increase marketing efficiency and reduce churn.

'Mare of Easttown' (Courtesy: HBO MAX)

The analyst referenced the elevated scripted content of WarnerMedia's HBO from cultural success Game of Thrones to the more recent phenomenon Mare of Easttown along with Discovery's quirky, cult-favorite programs, such as Dr. Pimple Popper and 90 Day Fianc.

"[HBO Max] is at the very beginning of its growth curve," Reif continued, noting the streaming service has been "on fire," despite increased competition in the space.

HBO Max (along with ESPN+ and Paramount+) attracted the highest year-over-year increases in downloads last month, according to a new Bank of America note, citing Sensor Tower data.

The platform, which registered 9 million downloads in March (+142% Y/Y), likely benefitted "from its generally strong content offering, additional markets vs. the year ago period as well as new/recent releases including: West Side Story, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, The Tourist, and Minx," Bank of America said.

Streaming wars intensify amid WarnerMedia, Discovery merger

As investors begin to shift focus away from subscriber growth, Reif predicted that business operations and profitability will be key variables for shareholders moving forward.

"'Is this a real business?' 'Can you make money?' Can you offset the declines in the legacy business?'" the analyst said, reiterating her belief that Warner Bros. Discovery has "the best set of assets" to not only help offset declines in the secular business but also expand "into the next growth curves of streaming."

Still, execution remains a top challenge amid new management and restructuring woes, although Reif said she expects that the company will "thoughtfully" answer and respond to potential problems in due time.

Overall, Reif believes that Zaslav "will be the industry leader," replacing the void left by former Disney CEO (DIS) Bob Iger's departure.

"[Zaslav] has a proven track record," she continued, noting that the executive will be able to handle increased competition as other services begin to ramp up content production and build their individual brands and libraries.

"Warner Bros. Discovery is just getting started," the analyst concluded.

Alexandra is a Senior Entertainment and Food Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @alliecanal8193

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Why Warner Bros. Discovery merger is the 'most exciting story' in streaming: Analyst - Yahoo Finance

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says a lot without saying anything at all. Sometimes he says things are one way like teams' hiring practices being "unacceptable" when our eyes tell us the opposite.

One has to wonder, if there were a way to get Goodell to be candid for once, and find out if he regrets how he handled the investigation into the Washington Commanders' toxic workplace culture. Because it seems like there's a whole lot of people looking at the league and some of its teams these days, and it's not to applaud its increased television ratings.

We mean Wednesday's news from The New York Times that New York state Attorney General Letitia James and the attorneys general of Massachusetts, Illinois, Minnesota, Oregon and Washington wrote a letter to the NFL threatening to investigate the league's offices after an investigation the Times published in February detailed a workplace that demeaned and demoralized women and minorities.

"The NFL must do better pink jerseys are not a replacement for equal treatment and full inclusion of women in the workplace," the attorneys generals wrote. "Our offices will use the full weight of our authority to investigate and prosecute allegations of harassment, discrimination, or retaliation by employers throughout our states, including at the National Football League."

We mean last week's report from Front Office Sports that a former Washington employee told members of Congress that the team essentially kept two accounting books and withheld ticket revenue, which it is supposed to share with the league's 31 other teams. The Commanders have denied the accusation.

Dan Snyder departs after attending an event to unveil Washington's new nickname, the Commanders, on Feb. 2 in Landover, Maryland. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

The House Oversight Committee began looking beyond the allegations of an office rife with abuse and harassment of female employees, allegations that include team owner Daniel Snyder, and into the team's business practices as well. And there was also a Capitol Hill roundtable in February, during which several former employees recounted years of uncomfortable at best, nightmarish at worst misconduct they endured or saw in team offices.

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It's easy for the NFL to pay lip service to the idea that it is trying to do better as the league trots out public service announcements to give the illusion that it is. But Congress and state AGs digging around might be enough to make Goodell and his employers, the franchise owners, squirm.

Which brings us back to the initial investigation in Washington, and Goodell's (mis)handling of it that may have started this domino effect of negative headlines and closer looks.

After bungling the Ray Rice suspension in 2014, the commissioner pledged to do better. There was too much justified public outcry against Goodell to sweep aside after he initially gave Rice two games despite video evidence of Rice punching his then-fiance unconscious and dragging her off the elevator where the assault happened before the league changed it to an indefinite suspension.

The NFL's offices have added more women and non-white employees and executives, but women who spoke to The New York Times for its February story say it remains a place where women are generally excluded, and that the league is still highly invested in maintaining its "overall whiteness."

And for his claim that the NFL would be more transparent, the findings of the investigation into Washington's workplace culture have been as fiercely protected as the nuclear football. Not only was a report not released, Beth Wilkinson's firm was instructed not to produce a written report, ostensibly because anything in writing could be leaked (just ask Jon Gruden).

Washington, not Snyder, received a fine that amounts to pocket change, and Snyder was told to stay out of the day-to-day happenings of the team. And that was after he was allowed to buy out the franchise's minority owners.

The sad fact is that for most hardcore NFL fans, none of these off-field stories matter. They don't care how female employees were abused and harassed, they don't care if Snyder was truly sharing revenue with the other franchise owners as he's supposed to do (though based on Washington's attendance in recent years they weren't missing out on much).

There are a lot of Commanders fans who care about the team's performance, and know that under Snyder's ownership there have been precious few playoff appearances, a parade of starting quarterbacks, and a litany of missteps and embarrassing moments for a once-proud franchise.

This hasn't stopped the ownership class from protecting him, as if there isn't another billionaire who is slightly more likable who'd pony up for Washington and bring some respectability to one of the league's oldest clubs.

But for those of us who look beyond the standings and have been paying attention to some of the terrible stories swirling around the league in recent months, it's worth wondering if Goodell regrets not telling the public at least some of what the women in Washington team offices endured and taking a harder stance with Snyder.

Because things have seemingly gone from bad to worse since.

Read more here:

The NFL's Daniel Snyder problem won't stop ballooning to the chagrin of Roger Goodell and league - Yahoo Sports

Title unifications are always a great thing in boxing, but Saturdays bout in Saitama, Japan, between IBF champion Gennadiy Golovkin and WBA champion Ryoto Murata doesnt have the same feel that a huge fight usually delivers.

Its because Murata is a weak champion who only has a belt because at one point the WBA was seemingly giving them to everyone.

Murata is 16-2 with losses to Rob Brant and Hassan NDam, good boxers but nowhere near the level of Golovkin.

Murata represents the latest in a string of less-than-stellar opponents for Golovkin, who for years was viewed as the most-avoided man in boxing.

Since his rematch with Canelo Alvarez in 2018, Golovkin has fought Steve Rolls, Sergiy Derevyanchenko and Kamil Szeremeta. Derevyanchenko was by far the best of that group, and he was best known for his performance in a loss. Golovkin was badly ill on the night he fought Derevyanchenko but still won a solid decision.

Saturdays bout is another in a string of less-than-optimal Golovkin opponents, though it is a big fight in Japan. Thats because Golovkin, who turns 39 on Thursday, is still a huge name in the sport.

Golovkin conceded his opposition hasnt been what hed hoped it would be.

It is a good question, indeed, and I don't want to blame anybody, don't get me wrong, he said. But trust me, I still want to box. I still want to challenge top fighters. I still want to be active. But as you obviously know, I signed with DAZN. And this is how they see the development of my career. This is how they see, how they approach the business of boxing.

Gennadiy Golovkin has to win Saturday to earn a third fight with Canelo Alvarez. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)

What the bosses at DAZN clearly hope is that Golovkin batters Murata, Alvarez defeats Dmitriy Bivol on May 7, and they can meet later in the year in the third renewal of their rivalry. Both of the first two bouts were extraordinarily close, with the first a draw and Alvarez winning the second.

Since defeating Golovkin, Alvarez has risen to become the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world. He won the undisputed super middleweight title and will bid for a light heavyweight belt against Bivol.

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More importantly from a business standpoint, Alvarez has collected a series of massive paydays. While Golovkin isnt hanging out with a cup on the side of the road seeking donations, he hasnt made a fraction of what Alvarez has made since winning their second fight.

If it bothers Golovkin, though, hes doing a good job of hiding it. In fact, he predicted it would happen before the rematch.

First of all, I never count other peoples money, Golovkin said. I was not brought up this way. And secondly, around the time when those two fights happened, I said that whoever wins those fights will get an amazing opportunity that will probably be unattainable for other fighters.

Because at the time, if you look at who was at the third position, fourth, fifth, they could not be compared. So, those two fighters, me and him, we were at the top. And the result of those fights opened up the future for the fighter who prevailed.

Golovkin was brilliant against Szeremeta, working the body in a brutally efficient manner. He stopped the Polish mandatory challenger in the seventh round after dropping him four times.

It hearkened back to the days of GGG and his Mexican style approach he learned from former trainer Abel Sanchez. He parted ways with Sanchez in 2019 and has worked with Johnathon Banks since.

Banks hasnt changed what hes done, Golovkin said, but added to it and given him more tools.

I personally believe that I got better, Golovkin said. I became a more versatile fighter. I expanded my arsenal. And of course, with age, you try different approaches based on your abilities, based on what you can do at this particular moment. And you also have to take into consideration the fact that I have a different team right now, with a different philosophy. And we're trying out new things.

Hes going to need everything he can to get past Alvarez, who is hitting his peak and is in his prime now.

Golovkin isnt concerned about that now, though, both because hes spent 24 rounds in a ring with Alvarez and knows what to expect and because he needs to take care of Murata to make a third Alvarez fight a reality.

Murata hasnt had anything close to what could be considered a signature win, which a win over GGG would represent. They sparred together briefly years ago and so Golovkin is familiar with him.

He knows hell get the best of whatever Murata has on that night, because it will be the biggest night of Muratas career. Golovkin insists hes ready.

You correctly pointed out that, in my opinion, he has not had a chance to face a fighter of my level or to see the boxing that Im going to demonstrate, Golovkin said. At the same time, I dont want to diminish his wins. I dont want to say anything bad about the guys over whom he prevailed. And the fact that in his rematches, he avenged both losses, it says a lot.

In his interview, he said that a fight against me would be the pinnacle of his career. He trained for this fight very seriously. And we also know each other personally. We even sparred at some point during the training camp, some time ago. So Im ready for this.

See more here:

Gennadiy Golovkin has business to tend to, but Canelo Alvarez remains the goal - Yahoo Sports

First published on Simply Wall St News

SoFi Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:SOFI) is nearing all-time lows, and we are wondering if the company has enough future earning power to recover, or has the current climate changed the outlook. In this article, we will estimate what the company is expected to make from analysts vs. what it needs to make given the current price.

For a quick overview of the results of our analysis, here are the key takeaways:

The market expects SoFi to make around US$300m profit in 2024.

Analysts are forecasting profits of US$136m in 2024, but the risk-return requirements of marginal investors are increasing the demand for higher profits sooner than before.

Rising interest rates may be impacting the reason why investors are demanding more and the stock is dropping.

As you can see, fundamentals matter, and we will go over SoFi's past and expected performance.

When we have a young company, without a reliable valuation, we can turn to the market cap and use it to see what are the implied earnings after a certain period. We do this calculation to discover what is "priced in" by the market.

The company currently has a market cap of US$6.8b (intraday), which implies that it makes earnings of US$302.6m in the fiscal year 2024.

We can calculate this by taking the market cap, time weighting it by the cost of equity in 3 years and multiplying by the cost of equity to arrive at the implied earnings.

Calculation: 6,8 0,872 0,0388 = 302.6

We see that, given the current market value (stock price), the company needs to make a bit over US$300 million in 3 years in order to justify today's price.

Now we will compare this with analysts' forecasts and size up the difference.

Check out our latest analysis for SoFi Technologies

According to the 13 industry analysts covering SoFi Technologies, the consensus is that the company will start generating positive profits of US$136m in 2024.

While it is great that the company is projected to become profitable a bit over 2 years from now, our calculation suggests that the current stock price has an additional US$166.5m of required or "priced in" earnings. This is by no means game over, as the company can make up for this difference with earnings even further out in the future. What we are currently seeing in the drop of the price, can be a change in patience from investors, more than a change in forecasts.

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This change of patience or risk appetite, may come from increasing inflation, which impacts discount rates used in calculating the required returns by investors.

Breaking into profitability can be a large catalyst for a stock, as it validates that a business can serve a market and can capture some of the created value.

How fast will the company have to grow each year in order to reach the breakeven point by 2024?

Working backwards from analyst estimates, it turns out that they expect the company to grow 67% year-on-year, on average, which signals high confidence from analysts, and shows the breakeven point in 2024.

If this rate turns out to be too aggressive, the company may become profitable much later than analysts predict and possibly extend the drop in value.

income-growth

Given this is a high-level overview, we wont go into details of SoFi Technologies' upcoming projects, however, bear in mind that by and large a high growth rate is not out of the ordinary, particularly when a company is in a period of investment.

For investors that believe in this industry, and think that digital lending and financial services can create value for the future, then they can check some of SoFi's competitors:

sofi-peers

This article is not intended to be a comprehensive analysis on SoFi Technologies, so if you are interested in understanding the company at a deeper level, take a look at SoFi Technologies' company page on Simply Wall St. We've also put together a list of pertinent aspects you should further research:

Historical Track Record: What has SoFi Technologies' performance been like over the past? Go into more detail in the past track record analysis and take a look at the free visual representations of our analysis for more clarity.

Management Team: An experienced management team on the helm increases our confidence in the business take a look at who sits on SoFi Technologies' board and the CEOs background.

Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com

Simply Wall St analyst Goran Damchevski and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

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Here is Why Investors are Revising their SoFi Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:SOFI) Pricing - Yahoo Finance

When Major League Baseball (MLB) officially kicks off its new season on Thursday, Americas pastime will take on a decidedly different look.

For one, pitchers will largely be absent from the batters box, with new rule changes allowing for a universal designated hitter. Other tweaks to the game will mark the return of the ghost runner on second base for regular season extra-inning games, while the post season will expand from 10 to 12 teams.

But Sam Kennedy, CEO and president of the Boston Red Sox, said more drastic changes are needed to bring in a new generation of fans into the game.

The quickest answer is, weve got to pick up the pace of the game, he said, in an interview with Yahoo Finance. We need more offense, less strikeouts, more balls in play ... fans want to see action. Fans want to see a game that is more quick.

Kennedys comments come as MLB struggles to expand the reach of baseball. The league hit a 37-year low in attendance in 2021, with 45.3 million fans filling stadiums for regular season games. That marked a near 34% drop from the 2019 season.

While COVID-19 restrictions, and concerns about public health weighed on fan attendance, TV viewership only proved to be marginally better. Viewership for the World Series improved from a 2020 low, with 11.75 million people tuning in to watch the Atlanta Braves take on the Houston Astros, but it came in well below the 23 million, just five years ago.

A prolonged lockout in the off-season has only added to the apathy. In a recent poll conducted by the Los Angeles Times and Survey Monkey, 6-in-10 Americans said the labor dispute had caused them to lose interest in the upcoming baseball season. Another poll found that 54% of the general public said they had no interest in baseball.

At the end of the day, the consumer will win. They will tell us where we need to be and when we need to be there, Kennedy said.

Critics have pointed to the length of the game and the long lull in between action as factors behind the lag in fans. A nine-inning regular season game averaged 3 hours and 10 minutes last season. Meantime, hits have plummeted to near historic lows while strikeouts have soared.

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The league and the players association have agreed to more dramatic changes for the 2023 season, following a trial run in the minor leagues this season. The bases will be bigger and easier to reach, to encourage base stealing, while a pitch clock will be implemented to shorten at-bats. Kennedy said he supports both changes that will allow baseball to find the best version of itself.

Atlanta Braves shortstop Orlando Arcia (11) is tagged out in the second inning by Boston Red Sox second baseman Yolmer Sanchez (47) during a spring training baseball game at the CoolToday Park Sunday, April 3, 2022, in North Port, Fla. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Beyond the field, the MLB is expanding its broadcast reach through new partnerships this season. Apple TV+ will exclusively begin streaming Friday night games, while the MLB is reportedly finalizing a deal with NBCUniversal to exclusively air 18 regular season games in a new Sunday time slot on its Peacock streaming platform.

Kennedy said he is fully supportive of the shift from cable TV to streaming, despite concerns from fans who say the new partnerships are likely to limit accessibility for those who are not subscribers.

Whats important is that we are where fans want us to be. On their mobile device, on their laptop, on their iPad, on their 80-inch television screen, and a bar or wherever, he said. We need to break down this friction and people need to be able to watch Red Sox games wherever, whenever, however they want to do it ... this is a step in the right direction for Major League Baseball.

Akiko Fujita is an anchor and reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @AkikoFujita

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance

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Red Sox CEO: Weve got to pick up the pace of the game - Yahoo Finance

AUGUSTA, Ga. Tiger Woods will attempt a remarkable comeback this week in Augusta, aiming to play in the 2022 Masters just 14 months after a catastrophic wreck nearly cost him his leg.

"As of right now, I feel like I am going to play," Woods said at a news conference Tuesday.

Woods was involved in a one-car crash in February 2021, a high-speed rollover that left Woods with compound fractures and extensive damage across his legs and ankles. He spent months in physical therapy and recovery out of the public eye, offering only tantalizing glimpses of his progress on social media. He played in a parent-child event in December with son Charlie and appeared to have recovered his swing, but he rode in a cart for much of the event.

Alert observers noticed several weeks ago that Woods was not listed among the "former champions not playing" on Augusta National's Masters roster, and soon afterward Woods' plane was tracked flying from Jupiter, Florida, to Augusta. Woods later played nine holes on Sunday and another nine holes Monday, declaring that his playing status would be a "game-time decision."

In the hours before making his announcement, Woods was on Augusta National's practice green, going through a litany of drives, chips and putts. He walked gingerly but without a limp, as he had the previous two days. With ugly weather rolling into Augusta at midday Tuesday, Woods opted not to practice any more on Tuesday and instead planned for nine more holes on Wednesday. Assuming that preparation went well, Woods would tee off at some as-yet-undetermined point on Thursday for his latest run at the Masters.

Although he's ranked 973rd in the world, Woods is still +5000 to win the tournament, per BetMGM, which are better odds than several recent champions. Money will continue to flow in on Woods right up until he leaves the tournament, whether it's with or without a sixth green jacket.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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Tiger Woods plays his shot from the ninth tee during a practice round prior to the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club on April 4, 2022, in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter at @jaybusbee or contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com.

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Tiger Woods says he is aiming to play the 2022 Masters - Yahoo Sports

A member of the annual 100-person All-NBA voting panel recently said on a prominent podcast, "What LeBron [James] is doing warrants first team. It's not even close to me. He is going to get one of those two guard spots." To which another All-NBA panelist responded, "I have him, at worst, a second-team lock."

That was on March 21, when James' Los Angeles Lakers sat in ninth place in the Western Conference with a 31-41 record. They have since lost seven straight and been eliminated from the postseason with a week left in the season. We do not know if those locks still stand, but there is still widespread sentiment that James will secure one of the league's 15 All-NBA roster spots playing for a team that could lose 50 games.

This would not be unprecedented, but it would be a rarity, especially in the sport's most talent-rich era. Naming James to an All-NBA team this season would be an embrace of statistics and credentials in a way that betrays winning contributions and the very reasoning many have used to exclude players historically.

Take Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal, for example. He averaged 30.5 points (46/35/84 shooting splits), 4.2 rebounds and 6.1 assists for a team that won 35% of its games and failed to qualify for the playoffs in 2020. He was left off the All-NBA third team in favor of guards Ben Simmons and Russell Westbrook, whose Philadelphia 76ers and Houston Rockets, respectively, made the playoffs that season.

A year later, Beal averaged a near-identical 31-5-4 on 49/35/89 splits and made the third team over a similar candidate field. The sub-.500 Wizards squeaking into the play-in tournament made a difference.

Another prominent All-NBA voter recently suggested his placement of Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant on this year's first or second team would depend on whether he reaches a 55-game benchmark the lowest figure ever for a first-team selection. This ignores the impact Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum has made in 22 more games. Durant has played 52 of 79 games to Tatum's 74 appearances in 79 chances. That difference might be the entirety of the nine wins separating their two teams. (James has played 56 games.)

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You cannot help but wonder if members of the voting panel apply different sets of criteria depending on a player's past contributions. All awards can be subjective, and All-NBA especially depends on what you consider to be the spirit of the honor. But keep your rationale consistent if you start weaving in narrative. If losing matters less to the candidacies of a James or Durant than it does for a Beal or Tatum, who wins?

Only 37 players selected to an All-NBA team since the league's merger with the ABA in 1976 have made the roster for a team that finished with a record below .500 an average of fewer than one per year. That list already includes James, who made the third team for the 37-win Lakers in 2019. Remarkably, he and Anthony Davis are the last two players to be named All-NBA for teams that finished in 10th place or worse.

Should the Lakers finish 32-50, as projected by FiveThirtyEight, their .390 win percentage would draw a finer demarcation line. Only 22 of the 283 players who have made an All-NBA roster in the league's 75-year history and just nine since the merger have done so for a team that won fewer than 40% of its games.

DeMarcus Cousins (2015 Second Team)59 games for the 2014-15 Sacramento Kings (29-53): 24-13-4 on 47/25/78 splits

Kevin Love (2012 Second Team)55 games for the 2011-12 Minnesota Timberwolves (26-40): 26-13-2 on 45/37/82 splits

Kevin Garnett (2007 Third Team)76 games for the 2006-07 Minnesota Timberwolves (32-50): 22-13-4 on 48/21/84 splits

Tracy McGrady (2004 Second Team)67 games for the 2003-04 Orlando Magic (21-61): 28-6-6 on 42/34/80 splits

Stephon Marbury (2000 Third Team)74 games for the 1999-2000 New Jersey Nets (31-51): 22-3-8 on 43/28/81 splits

Antonio McDyess (1999 Third Team)50 games for the 1998-99 Denver Nuggets (14-36): 21-11-2 on 47/11/68 splits

Mitch Richmond (1994 Second Team, 1998 Third Team)78 games for the 1993-94 Sacramento Kings (28-54): 23-4-4 on 45/41/83 splits70 games for the 1997-98 Sacramento Kings (27-55): 23-3-4 on 45/39/867 splits

Bernard King (1985 First Team, 1991 Third Team)55 games for the 1984-85 New York Knicks (24-58): 33-6-4 on 53/10/77 splits64 games for the 1990-91 Washington Wizards (30-52): 28-5-5 on 47/22/79 splits

Adrian Dantley (1981 Second Team)80 games for the 1980-81 Utah Jazz (28-54): 31-6-4 on 56/29/81 splits

McGrady, King and Dantley all won scoring titles in their sub-.400 All-NBA seasons. The scoring title has meant an automatic entry to the All-NBA roster (and often a first team invite) in all but two instances. Elvin Hayes failed to earn one of two All-NBA center spots when he averaged a league-leading 28.4 points per game as a rookie on the 37-win San Diego Clippers in 1969, and Bob McAdoo could not secure one of the two center spots when his 31.1 points per game led the NBA for the 46-win Buffalo Braves in 1976.

James, who has played 56 games this season and missed four of his last five with an ankle injury, needs two more appearances in the Lakers' final three games to qualify for the scoring title. His 30.3 points per game currently fall between MVP candidates Joel Embiid (30.4 ppg) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (29.9).

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James could be the 10th player in modern history to make an All-NBA roster for a 50-loss team. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)

James has enjoyed a better career than everyone on the nine-player list above, and his numbers this year (30-8-6 on 52/36/76 shooting splits) are also arguably better than any of their sub-.400 All-NBA seasons. James ranks among the top-five players in most all-encompassing advanced statistics, save for win shares and real plus-minus, where he falls into the lower half of the top 20. He has his numbers-based argument, and a near two-decades-long history of winning games can give voters permission to ignore all the losses.

The opposite was true for Devin Booker last season, when he averaged a 26-4-4 on 48/34/87 splits for the upstart Phoenix Suns. A career's worth of prior losing seasons almost certainly contributed to his 10th-place finish among guards in All-NBA voting. He is averaging a 27-5-5 on 46/38/87 splits this season for the more established Suns, and it would be surprising if he is not named to the All-NBA first or second team.

If it takes a legacy-establishing trip to the Finals to swing the narrative in a rising star's favor for All-NBA consideration, could the same lag be true for an all-time great on the other side of the spectrum? If a rising star waits an extra year for All-NBA consideration but gets an extra nod at the end, does it all even out in the end? Or does the entire system one with tens of millions of dollars on the line lose its meaning?

James is the highest-usage player for the NBA's 24th-ranked offense. The Lakers operate like the 19th-ranked offense when James is on the court and the 29th-ranked offense when he is on the bench. The Lakers also rank 22nd on defense this season, and they are 4.1 points per 100 possessions worse the difference between the league's eighth- and 26th-rated defenses with James on the floor. He has a negative net rating for the first time since his rookie season, when his Cleveland Cavaliers won 35 games.

James posted a pair of 50-point games over a six-day span in March that also included a DNP-rest. But for every dynamic offensive performance, there are long stretches during which he opts out of defense entirely. This should be expected of a 37-year-old sitting on 36,174 career minutes in a lost cause of a 19th season.

Of the 34 greatest players in NBA history, only four times has one played 50-plus games for a sub-.400 team in his prime: Elgin Baylor's 1959-60 Lakers (25-50), Wilt Chamberlain's 1962-63 San Francisco Warriors (31-49), Garnett's 2006-07 Wolves (32-50) and Dwyane Wade's 2007-08 Miami Heat (15-67).

Ricky Davis was the minutes leader and next-highest scorer for both the '07 Timberwolves and '08 Heat. Baylor and Chamberlain were playing for teams in financial disarray. The Lakers moved from Minneapolis to L.A. in 1960 with "no team, no coach and only one player, Elgin Baylor, under contract. The Warriors fled from Chamberlain's hometown of Philadelphia for San Francisco in 1962, losing half the roster in the move.

An all-time greats does not lose 50 games unless his franchise is moving, Ricky Davis is his co-star or he is no longer in his prime. Every other sub.-400 season from an NBA icon came outside of his prime (or, in Michael Jordan's case, when a broken foot limited him to seven starts in 1985-86). The lines are definitive.

Moses Malone's four 50-loss campaigns fell outside ages 23-35. John Havlicek, Isiah Thomas and Scottie Pippen only lost 50 games in their final seasons. Allen Iverson suffered 111 losses in his first two seasons and 55 in his last season. Dirk Nowitzki lost 40% of his games as a rookie and at age 39, never in between. Kobe Bryant lost 55-plus in each of his final three seasons. Garnett lost 56 games as a rookie and 53 at age 39. Durant and Curry lost more than 100 games over their first two seasons. Giannis Antetokounmpo lost 67 games as a rookie. None of those 22 50-loss campaigns resulted in an All-NBA selection for the player.

The evidence points to the dawn of a post-prime era for James. Only, none of those legends won a scoring title in his sub-.400 season, which raises some questions for All-NBA voters hoping to wedge James into a crowded field of candidates on superior teams. How much do you weigh individual production against team success? And does career achievement impact how you apply that weight toward a single-season honor?

Sharpie in eight of the 12 All-NBA guards and forwards Curry, Booker, Antetokounmpo, Durant, Luka Doncic, Ja Morant, Jayson Tatum and DeMar DeRozan before considering the contributions of Trae Young, Chris Paul, Donovan Mitchell, Jimmy Butler, Pascal Siakam, Zach LaVine, Dejounte Murray and Jrue Holiday, among others, to above-.500 teams. To say nothing of the debate over including Nikola Jokic as a first team forward alongside Joel Embiid and creating a fourth center spot beyond Karl-Anthony Towns.

None of this is to say James is not deserving of consideration. That he belongs in the conversation at age 37, outside of any deference paid to his past, is another achievement worth celebrating. I just have trouble following the logic of voters who in the past have referenced losing as reason for exclusion from awards.

"It is LeBron, and I know I'm supposed to go with the veil of ignorance," one of the aforementioned voters said on the same podcast. "Do I factor in a guy's legacy? Do I factor in a guy's contributions to the game, his incumbency in the Hall of Halls? I do. In this case, I do, and there are few guys in the league for whom I do that. There is a subjective measure there. I understand. It's me as a voter making an editorial decision."

"I did the same thing last year, when I put LeBron on second team, and some people didn't have him on," his fellow panelist responded. "And my rationale was, 'He's LeBron James. It's stupid to not have him on.' "

That leaves us to wonder if All-NBA is truly a democratic endeavor when the King can lose and still win.

Ben Rohrbach is a staff writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach

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Measuring the weight of statistics, losses and legacy in LeBron James' All-NBA case - Yahoo Sports

The IPO market has lagged so far in 2022, with recent data from Connecticut-based IPO investment management and research firm Renaissance Capital LLC revealing that fewer than 20 U.S. companies have debuted since the start of the year. According to EquityZen Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Phil Haslett, there are several factors contributing to the IPO slowdown.

So it's a number of things [causing the pullback in number of IPOs] and really just a perfect storm, Haslett told Yahoo Finance Live. You've got instability globally with what's going on in Ukraine. You've got inflation uncertainty. And you've also just got a big pullback in valuations kind of across many sectors, mainly in tech. And so when you put those all together, you get a lot of volatility, and volatility is kryptonite to IPOs.

Haslett joined Yahoo Finance Live to discuss the deceleration and volatility seen in the IPO market. EquityZen is a New York-based company which operates an online marketplace for trading pre-IPO employee shares from privately held companies. The platform provides accredited investors access to company-approved, pre-IPO late stage technology investments via their investment funds.

Last year was a record year for IPOs, with low interest rates serving as a catalyst for nearly 400 U.S. debuts to raise over $140 billion, according to Renaissance Capital. The 18 companies that have gone public so far in 2022 have only managed to raise a total of around $2 billion. On top of this, the performance of stocks that went public in 2021 has been lackluster the average 2021 IPO is down over 20% from its issue price, according to Renaissance Capital Research Director Nick Einhorn.

The market correction in bloated valuations of companies that debuted last year has encouraged some pre-IPO companies to reevaluate their worth. For instance, Instacart recently made headlines when it cut its own valuation by almost 40% to $24 billion.

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I absolutely think this is kind of just the tip of the iceberg, Haslett said. I think it was a really smart move by Instacart to kind of come out and say, look, we're not really a $40 billion company when you compare us to our public competitors. We're really a $24 billion company. Why penalize our employees and get stock valued at $40 billion, only to have the market down? So I think it's something that they kind of took on the chin up front, which I thought was really smart, and it's going to lead to some other companies [to do the same].

Smartphone with displayed Instacart logo is seen in this illustration taken March 25, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

SPAC crackdown

With the SEC now proposing new policies that would strip the advantages of special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) mergers over traditional IPOs, even further uncertainty looms for private companies aiming to hit the street. SPAC mergers represented a majority of new listings in 2021, and the prevalence of SPAC listings saw a jump of almost 150% last year from 2020.

The SECs proposed policies would eliminate safe harbor protections that allow companies being acquired through a SPAC to provide more forward-looking projections than are allowed for traditional IPO issuers. The new rules would also require more comprehensive disclosures to be made to investors regarding potential conflicts of interest between SPAC sponsors and target companies.

A lot of SPACs that would have normally approached these companies are facing more and more scrutiny and are really going to have to make a tough decision, Haslett said. So I do think this [slowdown] is going to be a bit sustained. The kind of key indicator we'll look at to see if the window will open back up a bit more is once you see some of these kind of bellwether tech names so think of companies like Peloton (PTON), Zoom (ZM), DocuSign (DOCU) start trading kind of back above even pre-pandemic levels to kind of show that maybe the worst is behind us.

Thomas Hum is a writer at Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter @thomashumTV

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Heres why the IPO market is decelerating in 2022 - Yahoo Finance

We are only two months removed from the Los Angeles Rams capturing Super Bowl LVI, and I still find myself counting down the 155 days left until the 2022 NFL season kicks off.

Luckily, we don't have to wait that long to bet on football.

Team futures markets have been available for those bettors who like to bank on early projections, and the activity will increasingly ramp up in the coming weeks. The NFL draft is a little over three weeks away, and the prop markets will steadily start to expand.

NFL draft betting requires a different approach than in-season, as the market behaves much differently than what you see during the fall. The odds are extremely volatile, with mock drafts and NFL insiders carrying enough weight to cause massive shifts. Instead of leaning on advanced metrics, bettors are tracking the reporting accuracy of media members, team needs and draft history of general managers.

Identifying relationships between NFL and college teams or coaches can be valuable. If an NFL team is deciding between two players, it makes sense they would be more comfortable selecting the player from a program where they have trustworthy connections. Connecting the dots and separating the signal from the noise is how you can gain an edge on the market this time of year.

The news cycle and speculative reports will slowly speed up each week until they spin out of control in the days leading up to the draft. Even though it's very early in the process, it's a very good time to pick a few valuable spots that could be vulnerable to shifts in the market. Here are the two draft props I grabbed this morning that are worth a wager at the current price.

There are 53 players on an NFL roster. There is the quarterback, and then there is everyone else. The position is far too valuable for the Lions' to pass up at the top of the draft. Willis has the physical tools and upside to warrant being selected with the second pick. With the arm strength of Josh Allen and the mobility of Lamar Jackson, the risk of passing up on Willis' potential is greater than the worst-case scenario of failing to develop him as the new face of the franchise.

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INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 03: Malik Willis #QB16 of the Liberty Flames throws during the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 03, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)

His projection at the next level is more difficult due to the competition he faced and his supporting cast at Liberty, but Dan Campbell's new culture in Detroit is a pretty good match. Robert Zeglinski of USA Today pointed out that the improving offensive line and Jared Goff's veteran presence are two factors that would be big positives in Willis' development. The Lions' offensive line finished 12th, just above the Colts, in adjusted sack rate last season. Goff affords them the luxury of being patient with Willis' development, while the offensive line will assure him adequate protection once he is ready.

I think it's good value getting Willis at this price to go second overall to the Lions. NFL teams do not typically kick the can down the road when it comes to the most important position in football. You will consistently hear general managers repeat the same phrase when discussing drafting or trading up for a quarterback: "If he is your guy, you go get him." The Lions won't have to go anywhere.

It stings betting into -135 odds this early, but the 57% implied probability is too low. Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner is one of the best cornerback prospects to come out in recent years and fills a position of need for a few teams in the top seven. Gardner didn't allow a single touchdown in coverage during his three-year career at Cincinnati. In recent mock drafts, he's slotted as high as the fourth overall to the Jets, who are in dire need of help in the secondary. Robert Saleh's defense ranked dead last in EPA allowed per dropback in 2021. Gardner would provide an immediate upgrade.

If Gardner drops past the Jets, the other team in New York gets a shot at him at No. 5 and No. 7 overall. That's where the bet cashes. The ghost of former general manager Dave Gettleman is still haunting the G-Men. Salary cap constraints have forced them to shop their best cornerback. The impending departure of James Bradberry creates an immediate need to draft Gardner as a more fiscally responsible upgrade. Leaving Day 1 with Ahmad Gardner and a top offensive lineman in the draft would be an impressive start for the new regime in New York. It's a solid bet they go in that direction.

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NFL draft betting: Will the Lions go QB with the No. 2 pick? - Yahoo Sports

Guessing right on MLB MVP winners or, at least having some educated guesses as to who could win is huge for a fantasy baseball manager. Imagine drafting the soon-to-be most valuable player in the real game! It's a massive advantage that could propel you to the fantasy playoffs, a fantasy championship or, some profit if you choose to take your ticket to the betting window.

Here are our favorite AL and NL MVP bets for the 2022 MLB season.

All betting odds courtesy of BetMGM

Andy Behrens: It kinda feels as if Shohei Ohtani should have a stranglehold on this award in the AL if he can simply remain healthy over the next three to four seasons. But unlike last year, the MVP odds on Ohtani (+350) are no longer a gift. I'll happily take a flier on Xander Bogaerts instead, a star at a premium position for a high-profile team who's actually earned MVP votes in each of the past four seasons. Bogaerts will bat third for Boston, surrounded by hitters like Rafael Devers, J.D. Martinez and Trevor Story. That feels like a recipe for a potential 120-30-120-.315 season if things break just right. So yeah, I'll take a Bogaerts +5000 ticket, thank you.

Dalton Del Don: Health remains a major obstacle, but Byron Buxton is among the leaders in homers per plate appearance over the last two seasons, is just now entering his prime at age 28 and also plays Gold Glove-level defense in center field. With the Twins sneakily putting together a strong roster that should push for the playoffs, Buxton has a real shot at winning the MVP should health somehow cooperate. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. would be my pick to win (+500), but Buxton is well worth a flier at 30/1.

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Mo Castillo: I agree with Dalton in that 2022 looks like the year Vladdy Jr. puts it all together and wins the award, but there's no fun in picking one of the favorites who has just triple-digit odds.

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So I'll move instead to Vlad's Dominican compatriot, Jose Ramirez, at +2500. Ramirez has been one of the best hitters in baseball for the past four full seasons (2020 excluded for obvious reasons), has finished in the top-six in MVP voting each of those seasons and should be very well motivated to deliver the best year of his career.

For one, the Guardians don't look like a good team so Ramirez will be needed to do most of the heavy-lifted. He's also mired in a contract extension dispute; delivering a career year would only aid his cause for a monster payday. And finally, there was this hilarious Twitter exchange.

Overlooked, underrated, maybe even disrespected whatever you want to call him, Ramirez is a do-it-all player poised to make a statement this year. +2500 odds is one heck of a value play for one of the best hitters in the AL.

Andy Behrens: While it's hardly the most imaginative pick, I like seeing reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper available at +1000. His team added plenty of punch to its lineup via free agency, so there's a path for Harper to lead the circuit in runs and/or RBIs while hitting close to 40 bombs and reaching base at his usual elite level. If the Phillies are winning, he's going to be in the conversation to win his third MVP.

Will Bryce Harper deliver a third MVP win? (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

If you want a plausible winner with much longer odds, take a look at Paul Goldschmidt at +6600. He finished sixth in MVP voting last season the fifth time in his career he's placed at least that high and his Cardinals are pretty clearly going to pile up wins. Goldschmidt rarely misses games and his floor is probably something like 90-30-100-.290.

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Dalton Del Don: The NL MVP looks fairly wide open since the leagues best hitter (Juan Soto) also plays for one of the leagues worst teams; Fernando Tatis Jr. and Ronald Acua Jr. are set to miss time; and all the Dodgers could easily cancel each other out. So, give me Pete Alonso, who should rack up homers and RBI on a winning Mets team (although the early injuries to Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer arent helping this theory).

Playing in an extreme pitchers park wont help Alonso, but hitting in front of Brandon Nimmo, Starling Marte and a rebounding Francisco Lindor certainly will (as will the New York media). Alonso at 30/1, please.

Mo Castillo: As much as I'd like to give this award to Juan Soto, he's the current favorite (+300). He also doesn't really steal bases or play on a good team, so while he can still clearly win based on his inhuman batter's-box domination, that chalky +300 seems more like a boost received after the injury updates to Tatis Jr. and Acua Jr.

All that said, give me Harper at a wonderful +1000 here. To quote a legendary film, Harper has lived long enough to see himself become ... underrated. After all the fanfare the then-18-year-old received, Harper has changed the narrative surrounding him to help him become one of the most quietly elite hitters in the game. Consider that his .309/.429/.615 slash line won it for him in 2021 numbers that were nearly identical to his Statcast profile. Basically, he wasn't helped by luck to deliver that monster line; he's just that good.

Hilariously, Harper is still in the middle of his prime (even though it seems like he's been in the league for 500 years) and will be buoyed by one of the better lineups of his career. A 100-100 season with another 35+ home runs looks to be in the cards for the 29-year-old.

(I also like Kris Bryant at +5000 and here's why.)

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MLB MVP Betting: The Fantasy baseball team's top picks for 2022 - Yahoo Sports