Ryan McDonald

Salt Lake City

Sports Reporter at Deseret News

Sports @Deseret. Come for the news, stay for the puns.

Featured in: Favicon

deseret.com Favicon

msn.com

yahoo.com (+2) Favicon

infoq.com

ksl.com

newsbreak.com Favicon

horror-asylum.com Favicon

saintsreport.com Favicon

globeslcc.com Favicon

ourcommunitynow.com + 3 more

Articles

How social media reacted to the Utah Jazz's bad luck in the NBA draft lottery

2 days ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

It was worst case scenario for the Utah Jazz Monday evening in the NBA draft lottery. The Jazz, alongside the Washington Wizards and Charlotte Hornets, had the best odds of getting the No. 1 overall pick in next month's NBA draft and thus the right to select Duke freshman phenom Cooper Flagg. The lowest the Jazz could have fallen was to No. 5, and that's exactly what happened, as the Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers all moved up to get the top three picks.
Will BYU have 2 of the 10 best players in college basketball next season?

3 days ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Much has been made about the high level of talent that has joined the BYU Cougars men's basketball program since Kevin Young became head coach last April, but just how good are some of the individual players who will be on the roster in the 2025-26 season?
This former BYU player just did something only Babe Ruth had done

1 week ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Last season in his first week as a Major League Baseball player with the Cleveland Guardians, former BYU Cougar Daniel Schneemann made history by becoming the first player in MLB history to play six different defensive positions in his first six games. On Saturday, Schneemann did something that didn't quite make history, but the only other player who had ever done it was Babe Ruth.
Former BYU star Travis Hansen is reportedly a candidate for a job in the NBA

1 week ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Travis Hansen hasn't been involved in professional basketball since he retired from playing in 2013, but there's a chance that could change soon. On Sunday, veteran NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer reported that Hansen is a candidate to become the Atlanta Hawks' president of basketball operations. The Hawks are restructuring their front office following a 40-42 season and losing in the Play-in Tournament.
Why Caleb Lohner and Jalen Royals were 2 of the most interesting players taken in the 2025 NFL Draft

2 weeks ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Of the 257 players taken in the 2025 NFL Draft that concluded Saturday, two with Utah ties were among the favorite selections of at least one outlet. On Sunday The Athletic published a story in which its NFL beat writers identified their favorite draft pick of each of the 32 teams in the league, and former Utah State receiver Jalen Royals and former Utah tight end Caleb Lohner made the list.
Utah football gets commitment from Texas edge Preston Pitts

3 weeks ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Early Monday morning the Utah Utes football program got a commitment from the transfer portal in former Auburn cornerback JC Hart, who will join the team for the 2025 season. Later in the day the Utes got a pledge from the high school ranks as part of their 2026 recruiting class, as edge Preston Pitts out of Clear Falls High in League City, Texas, announced his intention to join Utah.
Top NBA draft prospect Cooper Flagg is officially leaving college

3 weeks ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

The Utah Jazz are one step closer to being able to draft Duke freshman phenom Cooper Flagg. On Monday morning, Duke announced that Flagg is entering his name in the 2025 NBA Draft scheduled for June 25. The announcement is a bit of a sigh of relief for teams who are hoping to be able to select Flagg with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, as there had been some speculation - albeit very minor - that he might return to Duke for a second season.
Utah football gets commitment from Auburn transfer CB JC Hart

3 weeks ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Multiple Utah Utes football coaches have said recently that they need to add more than one cornerback to their roster during the current spring transfer portal window, and now they've gotten one. JC Hart, a transfer from the Auburn Tigers, announced his commitment to the Utes on social media early Monday morning. Listed by Auburn at 6-foot-2 and 199 pounds, Hart was with the Tigers for two seasons after being an in-state signee out of Loachapoka, Alabama.
The twin brother of a Utah Jazz player is transferring to a Utah school

3 weeks ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Taylor and Tyler Hendricks will once again be playing basketball together - at least in the same state. Earlier this week, Tyler Hendricks - the twin brother of Utah Jazz forward Taylor Hendricks - announced on social media that he is transferring from UCF to Utah Valley. As a redshirt sophomore at UCF during the 2024-25 season (he redshirted his freshman season), the 6-foot-6, 190-pound Tyler Hendricks played in 26 of 37 games and averaged 3.2 points and 2.5 rebounds in 12.3 minutes per contest.
AJ Dybantsa starred on a big world stage. Here are some of his highlights

1 month ago | deseret.com | Ryan McDonald

Each year, the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland brings together the best of the best high school senior basketball players in the United States to face the best of the best international players who are age 19 and under. On Saturday night, future BYU Cougar AJ Dybantsa not only played in the annual game but he tied for the Team USA lead in scoring as it beat the World team 124-114 in overtime. Dybantsa finished with 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.