One of these 20 teams will win the NCAA Tournament, plus what are the Bears doing?

TC Brewster / OSU Athletics

One. More. Sleep.

That's all it's going to take for us to finally get the NCAA Tournament. We've gone without it for nearly two full years and now it's Madness Eve. With that in mind, of course we're going to have some tourney talk today -- specifically, which teams have a legitimate shot of cutting down the nets in April. Another reminder to play our Bracket Games before the tournament opens tomorrow!

We also had another busy day on the NFL transaction wire Tuesday and it was a very depressing day for a lot of Chicago Bears fans. And in case you needed more proof that we're living in strange times: LeBron James, who rooted for the Yankees as a kid, is now an owner of the Boston Red Sox.

With it being Wednesday and all, I also have a nice little mailbag waiting for you at the bottom of today's newsletter. Thanks to everyone who submitted questions yesterday.

Oh, and happy St. Patrick's Day!

📰 What you need to know

1. The 20 teams capable of going all the way in the NCAA Tournament 🏀

Nobody really knows which team is going to win the NCAA Tournament, and that's the beauty of the whole thing. If we already knew, there'd be way less drama. There would be way too many thriving brackets. The madness would be sucked out of March Madness. Nobody wants that.

However, we do have a pretty good idea of which teams are more capable of winning the whole thing -- and the fact of the matter is that only a sliver of the 68 teams involved have a legitimate shot at taking home the championship. So who are they? Our Kyle Boone has ranked the top 20 teams capable of going all the way. Here are a few of his selections:

Gonzaga (No. 1 seed, West): Duh. They're the only team in the field to go undefeated in the regular season and they've been rewarded with a relatively weak region that might pave their way to the final. They've got one of the more potent, well-rounded college basketball rosters of the modern era
Oklahoma State (No. 4 seed, Midwest): Don't let the No. 4 seed fool you. OK State won eight of its final 10 games and beat No. 1 seed Baylor, No. 8 seed Oklahoma (twice), No. 3 seed West Virginia (twice) and No. 6 seed Texas Tech in that span. They also have freshman star Cade Cunningham, who is the projected No. 1 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft
Texas (No. 3 seed, East): The Longhorns have a ton of balance on their roster. The Big 12 champs can beat you from the outside or pound you inside, and that sort of versatility will make them a threat in the postseason
Oregon (No. 7 seed, West): Kansas and Virginia are both dealing with COVID issues so the West region could feature plenty of chaos. Oregon might be a No. 7 seed but the Ducks won 11 of their final 13 games and they shouldn't be underestimated

A few notes on Boone's list: The top four teams aren't just all four No. 1 seeds ... and not simply because that's a boring approach, either. Seeding doesn't always tell the whole story. There's actually multiple No. 4 seeds that managed to crack the top ten.

And while March Madness is typically anything but predictable, the long history of tournament does suggest that the winner is going to be a high seed. Since 2000, 14 of the 20 winners have been No. 1 seeds. Since 1988, only one team out of the top five seeds has actually won it all.

You might be tempted to pretend you're smarter than everyone else and make your bracket stand out by going off the board with your championship pick, but that's typically how you end up with your bracket in the trash by the end of the first weekend.

2. The Bears have found their quarterback 🏈

Over the past week or two, I've been seeing plenty of Bears fans on my timeline psyching themselves up over the possibility of landing Deshaun Watson or Russell Wilson as their new quarterback. That hype only got more intense last week as it was reported that Chicago was growing increasingly desperate to get one of those guys. Worst-case scenario ... maybe they'd settle for Jimmy Garoppolo.

But yesterday brought a massive letdown for Bears fans ... a letdown with bright orange hair.

Chicago reached a one-year deal with Cowboys backup Andy Dalton. Dalton will get $10 million with a chance to earn another $3 million in incentives
In 11 games played with nine starts in 2020 (following Dak Prescott's injury), Dalton completed 64.9 percent of his passes for 2,170 yards, 14 touchdowns and eight interceptions
Dalton reportedly received interest from several other teams around the league, including the 49ers
The deal puts an end to the team's "very aggressive pursuit" of Russell Wilson and likely means Mitch Trubisky is done in Chicago

While it's hard not to feel bad for Bears fans who have every right to be frustrated with their front office, it's also hard not to feel bad for Dalton, who's probably headed toward a lot of unfair criticism due to the mounting frustrations from that fanbase. After all, it's not his fault the Bears gave him a contract one year after they could have gotten him for cheaper/without having to trade for Nick Foles. (Silver lining for Chicago: At least it's only a one-year deal?)

Still, starting to think there's nothing Ryan Pace loves more than whiffing on a star franchise QB and settling for a replacement level schmoe.

3. LeBron James lands ownership stake in Red Sox ⚾

In an incredibly weird and uncomfortable twist of fate, LeBron James is about to become part owner of the Boston Red Sox. That news was announced yesterday when James became a partner with Fenway Sports Group, the ownership class that runs the Red Sox and Liverpool FC.

Here are some details:

LeBron and his longtime business partner, Maverick Carter, now own an undisclosed amount of FSG shares -- making them the first Black partners in FSG's history
They join the ownership group as it receives a $750 million private investment from RedBird Capital Partners (now FSG's third-largest partner)
LeBron will also receive an increased ownership share in Liverpool and become part-owner of Roush Fenway Racing, as well as other FSG subsidiaries
FSG (most recently valued at $6.6 billion) is reportedly looking at making additional acquisitions -- including NFL, NBA, NHL, European soccer, MLS, WNBA, NWSL and eSports organizations

It's not exactly strange or surprising that LeBron is getting deeper into the ownership game (he had a two percent stake in Liverpool before yesterday) but ... Boston? Speaking as someone who's from Boston, LeBron isn't exactly beloved around these parts thanks to some of the damage he's done to the Celtics over the years. And the fact that he openly roots (or rooted) for the Yankees? That's not going to help.

But then again, he still may not even be the most disliked member of the Red Sox ownership group at this point.

4. MLB's top 25 players under 25 ⚾

As hard as it may be to believe, Opening Day is creeping up on us and there's plenty of reason to be excited about that. MLB has plenty of young talent seemingly poised to transition the game into a new era -- including a 22-year-old stud who got a $330 million extension this winter.

As we get ready for a new season, two of our top baseball scribes have put together a list of the top 25 players under the age of 25 years old. Mike Axisa and Matt Snyder each compiled their own personal top 25 lists based on expected 2021 performance, then created a master list based on the averages. Here's their top 10:

Fernando Tatis, SS, Padres
Juan Soto, LF, Nationals
Ronald Acuna, CF, Braves
Bo Bichette, SS, Blue Jays
Gleyber Torres, SS, Yankees
Ozzie Albies, 2B, Braves
Rafael Devers, 3B, Red Sox
Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B, Pirates
Luis Robert, CF, White Sox
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B, Blue Jays

Even if you want to argue that the order should be different, having those three dudes at the top is a definite no-brainer. You can check out the full list (along with some good analysis for each player) right here.

As you may notice, there's not a single pitcher in the top 10, which isn't all THAT surprising considering pitchers can take longer to develop. That being said, there's plenty of pitchers on the back end of the list. And if you're one of the young guys who didn't make the list at all ... well, congratulations. You just got your bulletin board material heading into this season.

📝 Odds & Ends

Our Jason La Canfora says don't discount the Eagles as a possible destination for Deshaun Watson
Winners and losers from Day 2 of NFL free agency
Examining every NHL team's top trade deadline priority

📺 What to watch today

🏀 Bucks vs. 76ers, 7 p.m. | PHI +5.5 | TV: ESPN

🏀 Clippers vs. Mavericks, 9:30 p.m. | DAL +2.5 | TV: ESPN

🏒 Oilers vs. Flames, 10 p.m. | CGY -115 | TV: NBCSN

🥇 The best thing I saw yesterday

Bruins goalie Dan Vladar made one of the best saves of the year during his first career NHL start.

Mailbag!

I am a die-hard Canadiens fan. You, the Bruins. What do you think about the future of renewing their epic rivalry after the pandemic? -Bob

As a Bruins fan, one of the biggest bummers of this pandemic-shortened season is the fact that the Bruins don't get to play the Habs or Leafs at all during the regular season. Toronto has sort of replaced Montreal as the Bruins' most despised opponent in recent years, but the Canadiens trending back toward relevance should help inject some life back into one of hockey's greatest rivalries. As much as I have enjoyed watching the North division this year, I'm confident the Canadiens will once again be sharing a division with Boston next season and I'm hopeful we can get back to hating one another.

Of course, there's always the possibility of a late playoff showdown this summer if all goes well...

Do you think it's worth going to the theater in person to see 'Godzilla vs. Kong?' What movies coming out are you looking forward to the most? -Sam

I miss the movie theater so much that I would probably go see "Bohemian Rhapsody" (one of my most despised movies of the last decade) if things were normal right now. That being said, if you're going to go to the theater to see a movie, I feel like "Godzilla vs. Kong" might be an almost perfect choice. Loud, busy action movies are always better on the big screen, and who couldn't use the opportunity to turn your brain off and enjoy a silly popcorn movie at this point? Watching Kong and Godzilla destroy stuff for two hours sounds awesome right about now.

In that light, I can't wait for "F9" and "Top Gun: Maverick" this summer. Also looking forward to "A Quiet Place Part II."

What is the one trade you would like to see happen most this NFL offseason? -Anthony

As a Patriots fan? Deshaun Watson to New England. The entire NFL would riot and it would be absolutely glorious.