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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one, with a bunch of unusual words. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.
Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta
Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.
Yellow group hint: The Buckeye State.
Green group hint: Hoops leaders.
Blue group hint: Sports cinema.
Purple group hint: Hoops teams hidden in words.
Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Yellow group: An Ohio athlete.
Green group: NBA head coaches.
Blue group: Sports films of 1996.
Purple group: Starts with an NBA team, in singular form.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?
The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Jan. 31, 2026.
The yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is an Ohio athlete. The four answers are Bengal, Blue Jacket, Guardian and Red.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is NBA head coaches. The four answers are Bickerstaff, Brown, Kidd and Lue.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is sports films of 1996. The four answers are Happy Gilmore, Kingpin, Space Jam and Tin Cup.
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is starts with an NBA team, in singular form. The four answers are knickknack, network, Spurrier and Sundance.
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