Klay Thompson shot a season-best 33 points, marking a major milestone in his recovery from long-term injury, as the Golden State Warriors narrowly edged the Los Angeles Lakers 117-115 on Saturday.
Thompson has been slowly building up his game time since returning from consecutive ACL and Achilles injuries that left him on the shelf for two and a half years, and recently bumped it up to 30 minutes per game, which allowed him to top score against the Lakers.
The 32-year-old shot five-of-nine from beyond the arc, with Stephen Curry (24 points, five rebounds, eight assists) taking a backseat. LeBron James managed 26 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists for the Lakers.
"After not feeling that feeling for a few years, don't take a 30-ball lightly in this league," Thompson said after the win at Chase Center.
"I know that is always in me, but these things happen naturally. If I can play to do that every fourth quarter, I would. It's the flow of the game. Great things happen with time.
"It was really inspiring for myself. There were so many long days in this building, so many long days doing those tedious things. That is something that I wasn't used to prior due to my ability to play nightly. Now that I am able to do that, it inspires me to keep going.
"I am not satisfied. It felt really freaking good, though."
Warriors coach Steve Kerr was effusive in his praise of Thompson after the victory that takes his team to 42-15 for the season.
"[He was] phenomenal," Kerr said. "Just took one game at a time when we desperately needed him. With our offense kind of struggling to [find] a groove, and he got hot and took over the game."
Curry – who uncharacteristically managed just one three-pointer from eight attempts on the night – was also impressed with Thompson's efforts, saying: "It's still early in his comeback, but every night is a step in the right direction. To have that energy, that confidence in himself, nothing else matters in that moment."
Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant was relieved to come through the "noise" surrounding James Harden after his blockbuster trade to the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Sixers signed up Harden and Paul Millsap this week from the Nets, sending Seth Curry, reserve center Andre Drummond, Ben Simmons and two first-round picks the other way.
Harden had last January forced his way out of the Houston Rockets to move to Brooklyn and team up with Durant and Kyrie Irving, but the Nets' 'Big Three' played just 365 minutes together across 16 games in the regular season and playoffs.
Although the Nets went 13-3 in that time, Harden and Irving were each absent for three games of the seven-game series against eventual champions the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2020-21 postseason.
Injury problems have persisted this season, while Irving has missed 10 games due to not having had the COVID-19 vaccination, and the Nets were on a 10-game skid when the Harden trade went through.
Durant insists Harden does not owe an explanation after growing "unhappy" in Brooklyn.
"James doesn't have to explain anything to anybody," he said before Saturday's 115-111 loss to the Miami Heat. "He's his own man. He makes his decisions on his career by himself. He doesn't owe anybody an explanation, and I wasn't looking for one.
"I'm just glad that we got this thing done and now we're able to move forward and get some of this noise away, and I'm sure he would feel the same way. But from around our team and around our group, there's noise about what may happen. So I'm glad we can push through that.
"I think once a person gets to that decision of 'I'm unhappy,' I think he's gone through a lot of steps to get there. So, no matter what I say or try to convince someone - I'm not saying I did this, but this is just my theory on this - no matter what I say or do to try to convince someone to change their mood from being unhappy to happy, I think that's when I'm pretty late to the party.
"He's made his decision. I'm sure people make their decision before they get to that mode of being unhappy. I didn't have any conversations with James up until then. I thought everything was solid. I don't do any convincing. I'm sure you make those choices and decisions on your own as an individual. Me as a friend, I just have to accept it."
Harden saw his new team move to 34-22 with an impressive 103-93 defeat of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Joel Embiid continued his MVP form with a triple-double, making a minimum of 25 points for the 31st game in a row, and he believes Harden's arrival will only help him perform better.
"He's going to make the game easy for all of us, especially me," said Embiid. "I don't get a lot of easy shots. I have to work for most of them. I hope he's going to make my game easier."
Kyrie Irving is holding out hope that New York City's vaccination mandate will eventually get overturned enabling him to play home games for the struggling Brooklyn Nets.
Irving scored 29 points, including 20 in the final quarter, as the Nets suffered their 11th straight defeat on Saturday, going down 115-111 to the Miami Heat.
The point guard will be unavailable for the Nets' next three games, as they are all at home at the Barclays Center where he cannot play due to his vaccination status.
"I still wish I could be out there at home," Irving told reporters after the game.
"Some people say it's as simple as, 'hey, go get this, go get the shot.' No, it's not as simple as that for me in my life, but ultimately still praying for a better outcome."
The defeat means the Nets slip perilously close to going below .500 with a 29-27 record.
Brooklyn also traded out James Harden to the Philadelphia 76ers this week, while star forward Kevin Durant is still out injured. The Harden trade did mean the Nets landed Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond.
Irving said he felt no guilt for being unable to play home games as the Nets continued to slide.
"There's no guilt that I feel," Irving said. "I'm the only player that has to deal with this in New York City because I play there.
"If I was anywhere else in another city then it probably wouldn't be the same circumstances. But because I'm there, we have [mayor] Eric Adams, we have the New York mandate, we have things going on that are real-life circumstances that are not just affecting me. So you ask me these questions, I don't feel guilt.
"I'm just living my life as best I can just like everybody else that missed these last two years. I didn't have a plan in place while all this was going on, didn't know.
"The NBA and the NBPA made it very clear that there would be things that I would be able to do to work around this. And that's off the table. So you tell me if I'm just alone out here or do I have support from everybody else that's dealing with the same thing?"
Israel Adesanya has retained his UFC middleweight title after defeating Australian Robert Whittaker by unanimous decision in their re-match at UFC 271 on Saturday.
The Nigerian, who boasts an imposing 23-1 record, triumphed 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 to remain undefeated in the middleweight decision which he has dominated.
Adesanya had defeated Whittaker in a second-round knockout at UFC 243 in 2019 but the Australian put up a much better fight this time around with new tactics.
Whittaker took down Adesanya several times throughout the bout, also the champion found an edge by landing punches and kicks to his opponents' face, legs and ribs.
Adesanya started the better, before Whittaker took him down in the second round, landing several punches to the face, but the champion managed to escape his hold and respond with a few blows.
Whittaker again took down Adesanya in the fourth round, attempting to lock in a choke as he rode his back, but he managed to break free.
The Australian continued to try take down Adesanya whose ability to escape was critical to holding his victory, along with his attacking punches and kicks.
"I knew he was going to bring everything because last time I took everything away from him," Adesanya said after the bout. "I'm the big dog in this yard so he couldn’t take me down at all."
Whittaker felt like he had done enough to claim victory and admitted he was surprised by the judges' decision yet gracious in defeat.
"I was surprised with the decision," Whittaker said. "I started off rocky in that first round. I felt like I had it after that. It is what it is.
"I'm happy I fought my heart out. I'm gutted, I thought I did enough, I thought I took that."
Adesanya's next opponent may be third-ranked Jared Cannonier (15-5) who knocked out Derek Brunson in the second round of their middleweight bout earlier on Saturday. Cannonier said after the fight that he wants a chance against Adesanya.
Tuivasa knocks out KO king Lewis
In the co-main event, Tai Tuivasa claimed victory over Derrick Lewis with a second-round knockout in the heavyweight division.
Tuivasa extended his run of wins by knockout to five, responding after being taken down twice in the first round by landing a decisive elbow to Lewis' face.
“That’s the king of knockouts,” Tuivasa said afte the bout. “But like I said, I’m young... and I’m taking over now.”
The Australian moves into contention for a title shot against Francis Ngannou.
The Philadelphia 76ers made a statement as Joel Embiid piled on a 40-point triple-double as they won 103-93 over the Cleveland Cavaliers without new acquisition James Harden on Saturday.
Embiid scored 40 points with 14 rebounds and 10 assists for the Sixers, who improve to 34-22. It was only Embiid's fourth career triple-double.
The Cameroonian center's points haul included a highlight-reel dunk, a one-handed throw-down over Jarrett Allen late in the first half.
Embiid also made four of five three-pointers, going at 50 per cent from the field, while he added three steals in an outstanding game as they wait on Harden to be cleared medically to debut.
Klay hits season-high
Klay Thompson scored a season-high 33 points, marking a major milestone in his recovery from long-term injury, as the Golden State Warriors won 117-115 over the Los Angeles Lakers. Thompson shot five-of-nine from beyond the arc, with Stephen Curry (24 points, five rebounds, eight assists) taking a backseat. LeBron James had 26 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists for the Lakers.
The Chicago Bulls, sitting second in the Eastern Conference, overcame a sluggish start as DeMar DeRozan scored 38 points with six rebounds and five assists, while Nikola Vucevic added 31 points and 15 rebounds in a 106-101 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Luka Doncic scored 45 points with 15 rebounds and eight rebounds in a losing cause as the Dallas Mavericks went down 99-97 to the Los Angeles Clippers, while the table-topping Phoenix Suns won their fourth straight with a 132-105 win over the Orlando Magic led by Devin Booker's 26 points and Chris Paul's 15 assists.
Nets slump to 11th straight loss
Kyrie Irving led a late Brooklyn Nets charge that fell short as they went down 115-111 to the Miami Heat. Irving scored 29 points, including 20 in the final quarter, with five rebounds and five assists as the Nets slumped to their 11th straight defeat. Bam Adebayo had 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Heat who have won five in a row.
The top two seeds Casper Ruud and Diego Schwartzman will face off in the Argentina Open final after the latter won two matches on Saturday to progress at his home event.
The Argentine world number 14 had to overcome countryman Francisco Cerundolo 6-3 2-6 5-7 earlier on Saturday after their quarter-final had been interrupted by rain on Friday evening.
The match was tied at 1-1 in the third set when rain intervened, with Schwartzman triumphing when play resumed to earn a semi-final date with third seed Lorenzo Sonego.
Schwartzman would later beat Sonego 7-5 3-6 6-2 in almost three hours on a busy day for the 2020 French Open semi-finalist.
World number eight Ruud progressed with a routine 6-3 6-3 victory over Argentine sixth seed Federico Delbonis.
At the Dallas Open semi-finals, Reilly Opelka and John Isner broke the record for the longest tiebreaker on the ATP Tour since 1990.
Second seed Opelka triumphed over fellow American Isner but it was not easy, winning 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (24-22).
Opelka sent down 39-21 aces across the match, earning a spot in the final against fourth seed Jenson Brooksby who beat Marcos Giron 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (7-5).
Sam Ryder admitted he is still coming down off the adrenaline after his exhilarating hole in one on the 16th hole at the Phoenix Open on Saturday.
Ryder, who had endured a difficult round which included four bogeys and a double bogey, landed the ace, ushering in wild scenes of celebration from the packed onlooking crowd.
Play had to be halted for 15 minutes as debris was cleared off the course after the crowd splashed drinks and threw beer cans in the air in a raucous celebration of a rare feat.
The 32-year-old American became the first player to hit a hole in one on the 16th at Scottsdale since Francesco Molinari in 2015. Ryder is also the 10th player to achieve the feat.
“Still kind of coming down off the adrenaline,” Ryder told reporters, “But, yeah, it was pretty crazy.
"It's got to be number one. Nothing compares to that... it was a blur. I can't describe it."
Ryder hit a 124-yard tee shot which spun left and into the cup for the ace, re-living it afterwards.
"[Chris Kirk] hit a really good shot in the middle of the green, so I kind of got a little bit of feel off of what it was playing," Ryder explained. "It was just one of those things I was talking to my caddie, and it just ended up being a perfect 54 degree wedge.
"The club - everything always plays a little shorter in there, adrenaline or whatever it is, it's just, it always plays shorter. I just told him, 'it's just got to be that, doesn't it?' And he's like, 'that's all I ever thought'.
"We just talked through it a little bit and I was looking just out to the right and wanted to come down around his ball and maybe it was an accidental one-yard pull or something. It didn't look like it was moving too fast on the camera when I saw it, but in the air it just looked perfect."
Despite the hole in one, Ryder is eight strokes off the pace, sitting at six-under-overall ahead of the final day on Sunday.
Kevin Durant has returned to on-court practice but the Brooklyn Nets are still not offering any timeframes on his return to play.
Durant has been sidelined since January 16 with an MCL strain in his left knee, with reports he will not return until after the All-Star Game on February 20.
The Nets have lost 10 in a row in the absence of Durant, who is averaging 29.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game this season.
Durant joined the Nets for their current road trip, marking the first time since sustaining the injury and noted he is edging closer to a return.
"I'm getting better every day," Durant told reporters prior to Saturday's game against the Miami Heat.
"It's obviously a process to get back on the court and I'm going through that every day. I'm feeling much better as each week passes. It's slow but you know I'm looking forward to ramping things up."
He added: "I feel that the next couple weeks that I'll start to do more. That's probably as much as I can give you and I don't know for sure.
"I'm just listening to the training staff, just doing my job and coming in and following the game plan every day. Whatever they give me.
"But from the last few weeks I feel like they'll be able to give me more and more each day goes on so I'll ramp up here soon and we'll see what happens.
"I want to be back as fast as possible but I also know that I don't want to go out there and be 80 percent. I want to be 100 so I can be the best that I can be."
Nets head coach Steve Nash also declined to offer any timelines on 12-time All-Star's likely return.
"He's on the court shooting, working through things, looking really good," Nash said on Saturday. "There's still a period of time he's got to go through to get over the line, but really positive."
The Nets also confirmed new trade acquisitions Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond would not yet debut against the Heat on Saturday.
Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel insists there is alignment and good energy within his roster despite letting the trade deadline pass without making any moves.
The Lakers were one of the big players with player movement during the off-season but have struggled to 26-30 record this season.
Russell Westbrook's acquisition has not brought the hoped impact and he was linked with a trade but that did not materialise, nor any other potential moves.
The Lakers' inaction has reportedly led to some friction between vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka and star pair LeBron James and Anthony Davis but Vogel downplayed that, insisting there was good energy within the roster.
"I think there's just a natural reset energy to our group, knowing that the trade deadline has passed," Vogel told reporters.
"This is the group that we put together to start the year. This is a group we believe in."
Vogel had said "if there's a way to improve our team, we'll improve our team" ahead of Thursday's trade deadline, while he also acknowledged the team's energy "isn’t good right now" after Tuesday's 131-116 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
But the Lakers head coach was buoyed by Friday's practice and film session ahead of Saturday's game with the Golden State Warriors and a potential run down the stretch to push for the playoffs.
"I think with that deadline passing and having a refreshed mindset today, our group had really good energy about going out and trying to win a game [Saturday] and understanding and believing in what we can do this year," Vogel said.
MVP contender Joel Embiid is glad to put the Ben Simmons trade saga behind him and the Philadelphia 76ers admitting the situation was "pretty annoying".
Simmons landed a blockbuster NBA deadline trade to the Brooklyn Nets, with 2018 MVP James Harden heading in the opposite direction, with Paul Millsap, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and a pair of first-round picks also swapping hands.
Three-time All Star Simmons had not played all season after an off-season fallout with the 76ers following a disastrous playoffs campaign, before seeking a trade away which took months to reach a resolution, with Embiid regularly pressed on the situation.
"Yeah, I'm happy that I'm not going to be answering any more questions about that subject," Embiid told reporters.
"It's good that, not just for me, but my teammates, the whole organization. The whole year, it was pretty annoying with the whole situation, but I'm glad that everybody has moved on.
"I wish everybody the best in whatever they want to accomplish, but I'm focused on winning games here and trying to win a championship."
Embiid and Simmons' partnership at the 76ers had been seen as the foundation for an NBA title push but the duo never took the side to the NBA Finals, despite being Eastern Conference top seeds last season (49-23 record).
"It's unfortunate how everything happened, because you look at the history and we didn't get it done as far as winning in the playoffs, but you look at the history being on the court, what we did in the regular season, we were dominant," Embiid said.
"So it's unfortunate that winning was not the biggest factor. It's unfortunate that for him, having his own team and being the star was more of his priorities.
"But I always thought that everything was great, the fit was great. But unfortunately Ben thought that it wasn't. But we all move on."
Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the final of the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament, after they prevailed in hard-fought semi-finals on a day of drama in Rotterdam.
Top seed Tsitsipas faced a tough test against 20-year-old Czech qualifier Jiri Lehecka, whose dream run had included a shock win over world number 12 Denis Shapovalov.
The world number four was forced to battle back after losing the opening set, eventually beating the main-draw debutant 4-6 6-4 6-2.
Tsitsipas, whose last final appearance saw him blow a two-set lead over Novak Djokovic in the 2021 French Open showpiece, has yet to claim an ATP 500 title during his career, a record which he will now look to set straight against Auger-Aliassime.
Currently ranked ninth in the world, the 21-year-old had to overcome a stern test of his own against defending champion Andrey Rublev, who sits two places higher in the ATP rankings, to reach the ninth final of his singles career.
After losing a thrilling first set in a tie-break, Auger-Aliassime roared back to claim a 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 6-2 win over the Russian, his first victory over Rublev in three career attempts.
Auger-Aliassime is chasing his first career title, after losing in the final of this same event against Gael Monfils in 2020.
The final will be Tsitsipas and Auger-Aliassime's eighth career meeting. The Greek has won the most recent five, including their only previous meeting on a hard indoor surface, in the final of 2020's Open 13 in Marseille.
Maria Sakkari will face Anett Kontaveit in what seems set to be an enthralling top-10 clash in the final of the St Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Sakkari, the top seed in the tournament, had to go the distance against Irina-Camelia Begu, with the world number seven eventually prevailing 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-4.
That victory took Sakkari three hours and four minutes, as she had to fight back from a break down in the deciding set.
However, she is now into a fourth singles final of her career and has gone one better than her previous best run at St Petersburg, which came in 2020 when she reached the semi-finals.
"It was a very tough match. I think Begu played really, really well," Sakkari said.
"The level of the match was super high. I had to come up with some very tough shots and very physical tennis, but I'm very glad I did it, and I'm super excited to be in the final here."
Second seed Kontaveit awaits in Sunday's final, and the Estonian world number nine should be much fresher after only needing an hour and 11 minutes to see off Jelena Ostapenko 6-3 6-4.
Kontaveit has remarkably now won 19 matches in a row indoors in the longest such sequence since Justine Henin celebrated 22 consecutive victories between 2007 and 2010.
"It was a very competitive match. I really had to bring very good energy to come through on top today," Kontaveit said.
"She's a very aggressive player, so I had to be really ready for her big shots and just be as consistent and take my chances when I could. I felt like I did that really well today."
Sakkari and Kontaveit have met 12 times previously, with each player winning six times.
Andy Farrell lamented the result but not the performance after his Ireland team just failed in a valiant comeback effort against France in the Six Nations.
Ireland, shorn of the injured Johnny Sexton, found themselves behind after just 67 seconds in Paris on Saturday, and at one point early in the second half they were 22-7 down.
Yet Josh van der Flier and Jamison Gibson-Park led an Ireland fightback and, despite Cyril Baille's try, the visitors were within three points of France when Joey Carbery kicked a penalty heading into the closing stages.
It was not to be for Ireland, though, as the excellent Melvyn Jaminet converted a France penalty after having a try ruled out.
France have now won their past three Tests against Ireland, this after winning just one of the previous nine clashes between the sides (D2 L6), but Farrell was delighted with the spirit his team showed.
"We came here to win, came here to perform, but there's another class side in France that's going to have a big say in that, and they certainly did from the start – 10 points down after six minutes certainly wasn't in the script," he told ITV Sport.
"Getting to a stage early on in the second half when it was 22-7 just says everything about our side really, the character, the guts, the fitness levels and the want to go and play and get ourselves back in the game; I couldn't be more proud.
"It shows what we're about, that we've got the courage to go put our game out there when we're under pressure. To get in front and to make sure that we start well is something we need to look at.
"The forward lads going for as long as they did, digging in, all in all it comes down to one hell of a Test match. We didn't get the points here but the courage and the character was the bonus point here."
Saturday's result was the 15th time a Six Nations clash between these nations has been decided by seven points or fewer, more than any other match-up in the Championship since 2000.
France have scored at least 30 points in each of their past four Tests – including matches against Ireland and New Zealand – the first time they have managed that since a run of five games in 2003, and they are now the only unbeaten team in this edition of the Six Nations.
However, Gregory Alldritt insists Les Bleus' full focus is on preparations for their clash with Scotland on February 26.
"This tournament is the best in the world, every weekend is a really tough game," he told ITV Sport when asked about the possibility of completing the Grand Slam.
"We're not thinking of the Grand Slam, we're just taking it step by step and a huge away game in Scotland in two weeks, so we just need to prepare for this game and not think about the rest."
Ireland's comeback efforts proved fruitless as France held their own to claim a 30-24 win in an enthralling Six Nations tussle on Saturday.
Heading to the Stade de France without injured captain Jonny Sexton, Ireland endured a tough start – including Antoine Dupont scoring the fastest try they have conceded in the Six Nations – and Melvyn Jaminet's kicking kept them at arm's length in the first half.
Josh van der Flier and Jamison Gibson-Park led an Ireland rally early in the second, but Cyril Baille's try saw France regain their composure.
Although that might have been followed by another score in a frantic finish, when TMO intervened, Les Bleus did just enough to hold on to their lead.
Ireland had been swiftly into the lead against Wales last time out but were on the wrong end of a fast start in Paris, as Dupont latched onto an offload with just over a minute played.
Jaminet added the extras and then another three French points from the tee soon after, but Ireland hit back when Sexton's replacement Joey Carbery hung the restart kick up for Mack Hansen to pounce and go over.
Another Jaminet penalty nosed France into a six-point lead, before two more pieces of Dupont brilliance resulted in two more successfully converted kicks before half-time.
Jaminet's penalty proficiency continued with a long-range effort early in the second half, yet the momentum quickly swung Ireland's way when Van der Flier forced his way over in the corner following a successful line-out.
The gap was down to a point by the 49th minute, Gibson-Park grounding underneath the sticks, but Ireland were their own worst enemies four minutes later – an error in the ruck allowing France to capitalise through Baille.
Although Ireland were handed more hope when Carbery chipped through a 30-yard penalty, France pushed back and Jaminet sent a penalty through the sticks to seal victory having failed to ground what seemed set to be a decisive try.
Super Bowl LVI will be a tale of the student versus the master with Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor going against the man he used to work for on the Los Angeles Rams' staff in Sean McVay. They have not worked together since the 2018 season and their two offenses have taken somewhat divergent paths since that point, but the meeting between a coach schooled in the McVay offense and the man whom he learned it from is a fascinating subplot of the NFL's grand season finale.
When two coaches have a strong knowledge of each other and are born of the same scheme, how do they go about manufacturing an edge?
"It becomes a little bit of a game of chess," former NFL wide receiver Andrew Hawkins told Stats Perform.
"Typically I give the upper hand to the Mr Miyagi of the two because you can teach a system, you can put somebody in the system, the longer you're in that system, the more you know, 'I've taught you this so I know how you're gonna approach something because I taught you to do it, I know how to break your own rules', and there will be some gamesmanship and some of the Kyle Shanahan-McVay elements here with McVay and Taylor.
"Ultimately it'll come down to players making plays."
Two of the biggest playmakers in Super Bowl LVI will spend a lot of time face to face, with Offensive Rookie of the Year Ja'Marr Chase set to line up against arguably the NFL's elite cornerback in Rams superstar Jalen Ramsey.
Chase, just as he was in college, has been the go-to receiver for Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, and it could be the level of success Ramsey enjoys in severing their connection that decides who lifts the Lombardi Trophy.
Cincinnati's vindication
The Bengals may continue to have offensive line problems, but at this point few are still questioning their decision to eschew addressing them and select Chase instead.
In terms of individual awards, the most emphatic vindication has already been secured, with Chase taking home the hardware at Thursday's NFL Honours ceremony.
A decisive performance from Chase would end any debate, and the numbers illustrate the task on Ramsey's hands in attempting to stop him.
Chase's 2021 burn rate, which measures how often a receiver wins his matchup with a defender when he is targeted, of 64.3 per cent was just above the NFL average of 62 for wideouts with at least 100 targets.
However, when he has won his matchup, Chase has done so decisively. His burn yards per target average of 13.85 stands below only that of Tyler Lockett (14.72), with his tally of 3.2 burn yards per route good for tied seventh among wideouts.
And when it comes to making big plays, only three receivers have fared better in the 2021 campaign, Chase producing a big play – a 20-yard burn or a burn for a touchdown – on 36.6 per cent of his targets.
No quarterback had as many passing plays of 50 yards in the regular season as Burrow (12) and no wideout had as many receiving plays of that distance as Chase's six.
Chase is not one of the league's elite separators but, when he does get even the slightest step on a defender, the results can be devastating.
In Ramsey, however, he is facing a defender with the ability to lock down receivers for an entire game.
A strength on strength matchup
Team-mate Aaron Donald might feel aggrieved at not winning Defensive Player of the Year on Thursday, but Ramsey also had quite a compelling statistical case and could be considered a snub.
Among cornerbacks with at least 100 matchups with a receiver, only two defenders had a better combined open percentage allowed across both man and zone coverage than Ramsey in the regular season.
His combined open percentage of 17.07 trailed just Bryce Hall (14.61) and Casey Hayward (14.83), with burns for significant yardage rarely something Ramsey gives up.
For cornerbacks with a minimum of 50 targets, Ramsey is top 10 in 2021 in burn yards per target (8.12, sixth) and burn yards per snap (1.39, 10th).
But where does Ramsey excel the most? Preventing the big play.
Indeed, his 2021 big-play rate of 14.2 per cent can only claim to have been topped by Avonte Maddox and Tre'Davious White (both 13.9). Maddox started only five games while White's season was cut short in his 11th by a knee injury.
When Chase lines up against Ramsey, it will be a case of strength on strength, but neither appears to be spending too much time worrying about how to combat the other.
"He's got to check me"
Asked about Chase, Ramsey replied: "I respect his game, I respect how he's played this year, he's come in as a rookie and tore the league up, he has great chemistry with his quarterback and you can tell.
"I'll let the world keep talking about it [the matchup]. We're going to get out there on Sunday; I'll be ready to play, I'm sure he will be too."
Chase undoubtedly appeared ready for the challenge when speaking to the media on Friday, hinting that Ramsey will have the tougher task playing the reactionary role on defense.
"I'm just gonna play my game, he the one gotta check me," said Chase.
"I'm not playing defense, I'm playing offense, so he got to check me. We're going to go with our matchups and go as we go."
From the evidence of their respective stunning seasons, those matchups may well command the greatest attention when two of the stars of 2021 face off under one of sport's brightest spotlights.
Wales hooker Ryan Elias hailed his side's "never-say-die attitude" in their tense 20-17 victory over Scotland at the Principality Stadium on Saturday.
After suffering a heavy loss to Ireland last weekend, Wales gave their Six Nations title defence lift-off thanks to the kicking expertise of Dan Biggar.
The fly-half kicked 15 points on what was his 100th Test outing, including a drop-goal 11 minutes from time to seal the victory for Wales in Cardiff.
Scotland were a man down at that point after Finn Russell, who himself kicked 12 points, was yellow carded for a deliberate knock-on.
Wales trailed by five points in the first half and were again behind approaching the hour mark, but they rallied to avoid successive losses to begin a campaign for the first time since 2007.
"It's huge," Elias told BBC Sport. "We needed a big reaction from last week, especially for the crowd here today.
"We didn't turn up last week physically or in a lot of aspects of the game. I don't think we fired any shots last week.
"We had a long hard look at ourselves in the week. We were physical, we had that never-say-die attitude. Hopefully we can just keep building on that now."
Russell's yellow card was his fourth in Test rugby, each of those coming in the Six Nations – including one in a defeat to Wales seven years ago.
Biggar took full advantage by kicking for the three points soon after, rather than playing the ball out wide as Wales closed in on the try-line.
After expertly seeing out the win, however, centurion Biggar was left to reflect on a memorable day.
"This is one of my best victories in a Welsh shirt," he said. "It's been a really difficult week. We've had to put up with a lot of flak – and rightly so.
"To come back here and put on a show like that, to grind a result out like that, is one of the best victories in my 100 games.
"We put in a huge shift defensively, our forwards fronted up, and it laid a really strong foundation.
"Off the back of the week we've had, this team has shown if anything it's resilient and can hit back after a poor performance."
Scotland beat England 20-17 in last week's Calcutta Cup clash and started strongly through a Darcy Graham try in Cardiff.
But after failing to push on, they have now lost 10 of their 12 away matches against Wales in the Six Nations, including the last nine in a row at the Principality Stadium.
And Scotland skipper Stuart Hogg was left to reflect on an ill-disciplined display from his side in the Welsh capital.
"We're bitterly disappointed," he told BBC Sport. "The stuff that we're in control of, when we're on the front foot, we're really dangerous. At times, we weren't allowed to do that.
"We're a lot better than what we showed. That’s international rugby – you have to take your chances or you end up on the wrong side of the scoreline.
"[Poor discipline] was absolutely a factor. One penalty or knock-on is fine, but when we compound error upon error that's frustrating, because we know we're better than that.
"Credit to Wales, they were fairly good at times. It's a horrible feeling right now but that is Test match rugby."
Dan Biggar's drop goal on his 100th Test appearance gave Wales' Six Nations title defence lift-off as they battled to a 20-17 victory over Scotland at the Principality Stadium on Saturday.
Wayne Pivac's side were thrashed 29-7 by Ireland in their opener but dug deep to edge out Scotland, who were seeking back-to-back wins after beating England last week.
Darcy Graham and Tom Francis crossed over in a first half that ended level and it remained all square at 17-17 late on as Biggar and Finn Russell kicked four penalties apiece.
A big moment arrived 12 minutes from time when Russell was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on and, while Wales could not add another try, Biggar's boot two minutes later proved decisive.
Biggar punished slow-starting Scotland by kicking over a couple of early penalties, but the visitors soon got going and scored the first try with 11 minutes played.
Graham outmuscled Louis Rees-Zammit to ground the ball in the corner after collecting a looping pass from Russell towards the right.
Russell was unable to add the extras but slotted over three penalties, either side of one from Biggar, to give Scotland a five-point advantage.
But the hosts were on level terms at half-time thanks to just a second try in Welsh colours for Francis, who grounded after his side drove to the line from the line-out.
Russell and Biggar continued their kicking battle in the second half to ensure the sides remained all square heading into a tense finale.
Alex Cuthbert had a try ruled out for being in touch but referee Nic Berry and TMO adjudged that Russell was not in a position to catch the ball in the build-up when knocking on.
Russell was subsequently yellow-carded and Wales ramped up the pressure, culminating in Biggar slotting over a three-pointer, rather than going for the line, which proved the right call as Wales held on for victory.
Aaron Rodgers' position as the NFL's premier quarterback was reaffirmed on Thursday when he was named MVP, but could Sunday be the start of Joe Burrow's journey to surpassing him?
The Los Angeles Rams may be in Burrow's immediate sights as he and the Cincinnati Bengals look to pull off the upset in Super Bowl LVI, but long term he is pursuing Rodgers in terms of individual greatness, with this season's MVP award the fourth in the Green Bay Packers star's remarkable career.
"He deserved it, he played great all year," Burrow said when asked about Rodgers on Friday.
"He's been the best player in the league, I don't know if I would say that, [he], Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady have kind of been battling for that the last five years. I'm chasing Aaron Rodgers to try to be the best, he's been doing it for a long time."
Burrow will equal Rodgers' number of Super Bowl wins should he lead the Bengals to victory over the Rams, Rodgers' career partially defined by frustration in the playoffs since the Packers' triumph in Super Bowl XLV in the 2010 season.
Trying to stop Burrow on Sunday will be a player who may well feel snubbed after missing out on a fourth Defensive Player of the Year award. Aaron Donald did not receive that honour, which instead went to Pittsburgh Steelers star T.J. Watt, despite a season in which he registered a stunt-adjusted pass rush win rate of 63.83 per cent.
That was not only the highest for all defenders with at least 100 one-on-one matchups, it was over 10 percentage points higher than his nearest challenger, Myles Garrett (53.56).
Donald and his team-mates on the defensive line, including Von Miller and Leonard Floyd, took over the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers in the fourth quarter to help the Rams turn a 17-7 deficit into a victory.
So how will Burrow handle the challenge of facing a defensive front led by one of the all-time greats, who could not possibly need more motivation?
Burrow – whose average time to throw from the snap of the ball was 2.58 seconds, faster than the league average of 2.67 seconds (min. 200 attempts) – knows processing quickly will be crucial.
"In my opinion, they're [the Rams' pass rush] the best in the league at what they do, they get a lot of pressure on the quarterback, they get schemed to get a lot of one-on-one matchups," he added.
"So it's going to be partly on me to handle that pressure, get the ball out of my hands quickly and make plays when the opportunities are there."
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