Victor Wembanyama is honoured to have been labelled a "generational talent" and an "alien" by the legendary LeBron James.
Wembanyama is projected to be the number one pick in the NBA Draft next year and the French teenager has demonstrated why during his first trip to America this week.
The 18-year-old once again showed what the hype is all about as he scored 36 points, claimed 11 rebounds and made four blocks for Metropolitans 92 in a 112-106 win over G League Ignite on Thursday.
Over the two exhibition games this week, Wembanyama racked up 73 points, was 22-for-44 shooting, landed nine three-pointers, took 15 rebounds and made nine blocked shots.
Los Angeles Lakers superstar James said of the 7-foot-3 Wembanyama: "Everybody has been labelling this unicorn thing.
"Everybody has been a unicorn for the last two years, but he's more like an alien. I've never seen, no one has ever seen anyone as tall as he is, but as fluid and as graceful as he is out on the floor."
James added: "His ability to put the ball on the floor, shoot step-back jumpers out of the post, step-back threes, catch-and-shoot threes, block shots... he's for sure a generational talent."
Wembanyama was proud when he heard James singing his praises, but will remain grounded.
He said: "It's obviously an honour to see such great people talk like this about me, but it really doesn't change anything.
"I was like, 'Oh that's cool.' But no more. I have to try to stay focused. The thing is, I didn't do anything yet."
G League coach Jason Hart also had high praise for Wembanyama.
He said: "We will never see another player like that again. Just like I said about Shaq [Shaquille O'Neal], they just don't come around often.
"The good thing for me coaching, I'm glad I got a chance to play against him at 18. At 24, he's going to be a whole new player, somebody else's problem."
Albert Pujols has revealed he almost cut short his final season in baseball before going on the hot hitting streak that took him past 700 home runs.
The St Louis Cardinals great was mired in dismal early-season form, collecting just four homers in the first three months, but he added 20 in the remainder of the campaign.
Pujols failed to go deep once in June, which is when he began to doubt himself, questioning whether he should stick with it to the end of the season.
The 42-year-old will sign off on his MLB career after the playoffs, with the Cardinals hosting the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday, in the opening game of their best-of-three wildcard round tussle.
His haul of 24 home runs for the season is Pujols' best tally since 2016, when he hit 31, and it justifies the decision to play on after questioning whether he could justify continuing his career.
"There were some times when I [asked] myself that, many times," Pujols told MLB.com.
Pujols said that by early July, he had "figured something out". A homer in an 11-8 loss to the Phillies on July 7 stopped the rot.
He joined only three others in history in passing 700 career home runs: Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714).
Pujols said: "When you have good people around you and they are encouraging you and you realise that God has opened so many doors for you, man, it puts things back into perspective.
"I decided, 'I'm going to stick with it!'.
"I knew sooner or later it was going to come and turn around for me, because it can't be like it was all year long."
The Cardinals finished the regular season with a 93-69 record, and Pujols is hoping they have saved the best for last.
He said: "It's my last year and I want to go out with my best. And my best is winning a championship."
Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson accepted the lion's share of blame for his side's 12-9 overtime loss at home against the Indianapolis Colts.
Wilson completed 21 of 39 passes for 274 yards and two interceptions in Thursday's game, with the second interception proving especially costly late in the fourth quarter.
With less than two and a half minutes remaining, leading 9-6, the Broncos opted to pass the ball to try to seal the game, but instead Wilson took a shot at the endzone and was picked off by former defensive player of the year Stephon Gilmore.
The Colts ended up driving down the field to tie the game as time expired, before kicking another field goal on the first drive of overtime to put the pressure back on the Broncos.
Wilson completed long passes to Jerry Jeudy and Mike Boone to move inside the 10-yard line, but when faced with a fourth-and-one at the five-yard line, they decided to go for it instead of kicking for the tie.
The final throw of the game was broken up once again by Gilmore in the endzone, relegating the Broncos to a 2-3 record with one of the worst offenses in the NFL in the first year of Wilson's five-year, $242million contract.
Speaking after the game, Wilson did not hide from his struggles, saying he needs to figure it out in a hurry.
"It's very simple, at the end of the day I've got to be better, I've got to play better," he said. "This team, our defense played their butts off tonight, we had some key, good drives and we moved the ball into the red zone, but we didn't get to capitalise on some of them.
"At the end of the day, those two interceptions can't happen. Can't happen. I let the team down tonight, but the good thing is, one thing I know about myself is I'm going to respond – I don't know any other way.
"I always believe in myself, I always believe in this team and what we can do, and what I can do.
"When you play this game, the one thing you know is you're going to go through adversity, and with adversity you get a choice. I'm always going to choose to understand that adversity is just temporary, and you're going to overcome the obstacles and battles.
"We're all working together, we're all still together and focused on trying to do whatever it takes. It starts with me, and I'll make sure I do that."
Touching on the final play, Wilson said it was the right decision to go for it.
"We had a good play-call on, we went to Courtland [Sutton] there and the guy [Gilmore] made a good play," he said.
"I was ready to move around if we needed to – we came up with a big fourth-and-two a couple drives before – so we went for it.
"We didn't want to end in a tie, we wanted to try and win the game. That was our mentality. I think coach made a good call, I think I've got to find a way to make a play, whatever it takes.
"The thing about close games… is it comes down to finding a way. We've found a way before, but this time we didn't."
Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett also accepted blame for Wilson's struggles, saying he needs to figure out how to get his star quarterback into a rhythm and get points on the board.
"We want to always try to get him into a rhythm, and I didn't feel like we were able to get him into that," Hackett said. "It starts with me, to be able to get him into that rhythm with the receivers and tight ends.
"There were a couple of opportunities – we had a couple of drops again, and a couple of penalties – we keep continually hurting ourselves, and I think that's the thing that's frustrating.
"We need to address it as an offense, and we need to fix that, because the performance from the defense was spectacular, and we're wasting those great opportunities to go win a football game."
Hackett also said he did not regret his final play-call, calling it "a good decision".
"We wanted to win the game," he said. "We hadn't moved the ball very well the whole night, and I thought we had a spectacular drive to get all the way down there.
"It ended up being fourth-and-one, we got the 'go' to go for it, and I thought that was a good decision. We wanted to put the ball in Russell's hands and call a play that we know he really likes – and it didn't work out.
"The timeout before was to get a feel for what they were doing, and the run did not look as good as we hoped it would have, and it gave us a chance with Russell. That's all you can ask for in that situation to win the game."
Jason Robertson has agreed to a four-year, $31million contract extension with the Dallas Stars just a week before their regular-season opener against the Nashville Predators on October 13.
The deal, which runs through the 2025-26 season, was announced late Wednesday after the young prolific goal-scorer missed the first two weeks of training camp over a contract dispute.
"Jason is an integral part of the present and future of our team and we're thrilled to have him for the next four years," Stars general manager Jim Nill said.
Robertson turned 23 years old shortly after the 2021-22 season, when he tallied 41 goals and 38 assists in 74 games to become just the fourth Star to score 40 goals in a season since the franchise moved to Dallas in 1993, joining Hall of Famer Mike Modano, Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin.
His 13 power-play goals led the Stars while his 11 game-winning scores were tied with the Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl, Rangers’ Chris Kreider and Lightning’s Steven Stamkos for the most in the NHL.
A second-round pick by Dallas in 2017, Robertson had 17 goals and 28 assists in 51 games as a rookie in 2020-21. His 45 points were second most by a Stars rookie since the club relocated to Dallas, trailing only the 55 points Jussi Jokinen had in 2005-06.
"Since he was drafted by our organisation, he has worked tirelessly to become a better player every day. His knack for scoring goals and seeing plays develop on the ice are just some of the tremendous assets that he brings to our team," Nill said. "He is one of the best young players in the NHL, and we look forward to seeing him continue to progress."
The Indianapolis Colts grinded out a gritty 12-9 overtime win on the road against the Denver Broncos on Thursday night, with neither team scoring a touchdown in the game.
In an ugly offensive showing, the teams combined for 12 punts, six fumbles and four interceptions, heading into halftime with a 6-3 Broncos lead thanks to a pair of Brandon McManus field goals.
The Broncos had a chance to run out the clock and ice the game, but instead called a pass play, with quarterback Russell Wilson throwing his second interception of the game to keep the Colts alive.
They would march down the field for a Chase McLaughlin field goal with five seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game at 9-9 and force overtime, and he would kick his fourth field goal of the night in overtime to take the lead.
Needing a field goal to extend the game or a touchdown to win it, the Broncos finally mounted a strong drive with long completions to Melvin Gordon and Jerry Jeudy to move into the redzone. When presented with a fourth-and-one on the five-yard line, they went for it instead of kicking another field goal to tie, and failed to convert a pass into the endzone.
It was a miserable day for both quarterbacks as their offensive lines struggled to keep them upright, with the Broncos sacking Matt Ryan six times while Wilson absorbed four sacks of his own. Ryan finished up completing 26 of 41 passes for 251 yards and two interceptions, while Wilson completed 21 of 39 for 274 yards and two interceptions.
Defensively, Caden Sterns had both interceptions for the Broncos, while teammate Bradley Chubb had two-and-a-half sacks, but Colts cornerback and former Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore proved to be the game-winner.
Gilmore secured the crucial interception to give the Colts a chance, and was then credited with his second pass break-up on the final play of the game to deny the Broncos the winning touchdown.
After the first trip around TPC Summerlin on Thursday it is Tom Hoge alone atop the Shriners Children's Open leaderboard with an eight-under 63.
Hoge finished his bogey-free round with four birdies and two eagles, holing out from the fairway on the par-four seventh hole, before sinking a 33-foot eagle putt when he took on the water on the par-five 16th.
He leads by one stroke from the duo of Kim Si-woo and Maverick McNealy, who combined to shoot one bogey and 15 birdies to sit at seven under.
Kim is part of a strong South Korean contingent in the top-five, with Tom Kim, Kim Seong-hyeon and Im Sung-jae all part of an eight-way tie for fourth at six under.
Former world number one Jason Day headlines the next group at five under as he continues to climb back up the rankings, and Mito Pereira is at four under after bursting onto the scene last season by making the playoff at the PGA Championship.
Winner of the first event of the season and a strong performer at the Presidents Cup, Max Homa is also at four under, along with fellow United States team member Patrick Cantlay and International team representative Cam Davis.
Victor Wembanyama put on a show for the NBA scouts in attendance for Metropolitans 92's 112-106 victory against G League Ignite on Thursday.
Wembanyama, 18, is viewed as the best NBA prospect since LeBron James entered the 2003 draft straight out of high school, standing at seven-foot-four while demonstrating tremendous movement, ball handling and shooting touch.
After posting 37 points with five blocks while shooting seven-of-11 from three-point range in his United States debut on Tuesday, the future top overall draft pick backed it up with 36 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and four blocks in his second go.
The exhibition series was conceived to allow Wembanyama to go head-to-head with fellow top prospect Scoot Henderson, who is signed to the G League. Unfortunately, a knee-on-knee collision between the two headline stars five minutes into the first quarter ended Henderson's night, although he is expected to make a quick recovery after being diagnosed with a bone bruise.
Wembanyama will spend this season playing professionally in France's top league, and his agent confirmed the young phenom has no interest in shutting things down to protect his stock for the draft.
Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers called Wednesday's practice fight between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole "unfortunate".
Initially reported by The Athletic, Wednesday's session turned heated and led to the two players becoming involved in an altercation.
Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes later claimed "league sources" said "there was a build-up stemming from team-mates noticing a change in Poole’s behaviour throughout camp with the guard on the verge of securing a lucrative extension".
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Myers said fights in practice will always be a part of highly competitive team sports.
"Everybody's fine," he said. "Look, it's the NBA, professional sports, these things happen. Nobody likes it. We don't condone it, but it happened.
"Draymond apologised to the team this morning, Jordan was there in the room, I was there in the room with the team, the coaches, the players and we heard that.
"It's unfortunate, I'm not going to deny it. It'll take some time to move through, but we'll move through it and move forward, and I'm confident that we will.
"We've got a good team, we've got good leadership, we've got some guys that have been here a long time.
"This isn't our first thing that's happened, first sense of adversity; we've been through some of this before. Don't like going through it, but it's part of the NBA and it's part of sports."
But Myers suggested reports of conflict relating to player contracts were wide of the mark, saying "[it's not about] who's getting paid and who isn't; I don't sense that".
Green was not at practice on Thursday, with Myers adding "space is good" and that time is needed to cool things down.
Myers finished by saying any potential suspension for Green will be handled internally.
Poole, 23, is coming off a career-best season in which he became a major asset for the championship-winning Warriors, averaging 17 points per game in the playoffs at over 50 per cent shooting while leading the NBA in free throw percentage (92.5 per cent).
This upcoming season will be the last of his rookie contract, and he will be expecting an extension similar to that recently awarded to the Miami Heat's Tyler Herro, in the region of four years and $130million.
Meanwhile, Green is also in a crucial contract year, as after the season he will have the ability to opt out of the final campaign of his four-year, $99m deal to seek what will likely be the last big extension of his career.
Jamaica seems on course to successfully defend its title at the 2022 Caribbean Golf Association's (CGA) Four-Ball Championship in Florida after improving on its day-one standing at the end of day two.
Anett Kontaveit and Maria Sakkari were both knocked out of the Ostrava Open on Thursday as several top seeds tumbled.
Third seed Kontaveit, who won this competition last year, retired when a set down to Tereza Martincova, while world number seven Maria Sakkari was defeated 5-7 7-5 7-5 by 21-year-old American Alycia Parks in a big upset.
Parks lost the opener but found two crucial breaks of serve when 6-5 up in both the second and third sets to eliminate the fourth seed.
The withdrawal of Belinda Bencica – seeded sixth – with a foot injury put Barbora Krejcikova into the quarter-finals, while Ekaterina Alexandrova will also be in the last eight after overcoming fifth seed Daria Kasatkina 6-1 7-6 (7-1).
The tournament favourites were in much better form at the Jasmin Open in Tunisia, as the top two seeds sealed their places in the quarter-finals with straight-sets wins.
Favourite Ons Jabeur cruised to a 6-1 6-3 victory over Evgeniya Rodina, converting four of her seven break points to safely advance to the next round of her home tournament.
And number two seed Veronika Kudermetova eased past Magdalena Frech 6-3 6-4 to set up a quarter-final meeting with Diane Parry.
After years of fighting for yards in the NFL, former running back Le’Veon Bell is scheduled to make his professional boxing debut against ex-UFC fighter Uriah Hall on the Jake Paul-Anderson Silva undercard on October 29.
Bell, a two-time first-team All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowl selection who ran for 6,554 yards in 96 games over an eight-year NFL career, will enter the four-round bout in Glendale, Arizona after recording a knockout of fellow former NFL running back Adrian Peterson in the fifth round of an exhibition on September 10.
"As soon as Most Valuable Promotions approached me about joining the Paul-Silva pay-per-view, I told them I want in and didn't care who the opponent was," the 30-year-old Bell said.
"Uriah Hall is going to feel my punching power and tap out like he's getting submitted. He is not built like me."
Hall, 38, spent nine years in the UFC before announcing his retirement from mixed martial arts in August after his second straight loss. This will also be his professional boxing debut.
Hall finished with a 17-11 record in MMA, and his eight knockouts/technical knockouts matched Anderson Silva and Thiago Silva for the most in UFC middleweight history.
"Le'Veon Bell, I hope you bring your best," Hall said. "I know I will."
Novak Djokovic is feeling "physically fresh and mentally motivated" after maintaining his positive form with victory over Botic Van De Zandschulp in round two of the Astana Open.
The Serbian brushed aside Cristian Garin in his opener and did likewise in Thursday's match with Van De Zandschulp, prevailing in just 71 minutes in the Kazakh capital.
Djokovic has now won six matches in a row and is seeking back-to-back titles after triumphing at the Tel Aviv Open last week – his 89th ATP singles crown.
He reeled off five games in a row in the second set to advance 6-3 6-1, with that his 30th tour-level victory of the year.
And as Djokovic nears the end of a rather mixed season, the 21-time grand slam winner is in the mood to add further titles to his collection.
"My season is different from any other so don't look at my season in comparison to others," he said in his post-match interview.
"I haven't played for over three months before Israel so I definitely am physically and mentally motivated to do well."
Awaiting Djokovic in the quarter-final is Karen Khachanov, who eliminated Marin Cilic with a 2-6 6-3 6-3 comeback victory.
World number four Daniil Medvedev also advanced thanks to a 6-3 6-2 win over Emil Ruusuvuori, while Hubert Hurkacz beat Alexander Bublik 6-4 6-4.
At the Japan Open, third seed Taylor Fritz defeated Hiroki Moriya in three sets and will now face fifth seed Nick Kyrgios, who recovered to beat Kamil Majchrzak 3-6 6-2 6-2.
Denis Shapovalov, looking to build on his run to the Seoul Open final, got the better of home hope Rio Noguchi with a 6-3 6-1 win to advance to the quarter-finals.
Chris Eubank Jr's scheduled bout with Conor Benn has been postponed after the latter returned a positive drugs test.
On Wednesday, it emerged 26-year-old Benn had tested positive for the banned substance clomifene last month.
The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) subsequently prohibited the fight from taking place, though promoters on both sides attempted to force a U-turn.
However, their efforts were unsuccessful, with the fight now officially postponed.
"After discussions with various parties, we have taken the decision to formally postpone the bout between Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn," a joint statement from the promoters read on Thursday.
"It is undeniable that the BBBofC's decision to withdraw their sanctioning was procedurally flawed and without due process. That remains a legal issue between the promoters and the board which we intend to pursue.
"However, whilst there are legal routes to facilitate the fight taking place as planned, we do not believe that it is in the fighters' interests for those to be pursued at such a late stage, or in the wider interests of the sport.
"As promoters, we take our obligations and duties very seriously, and a full investigation will now need to take place. We will be making no further comment at this time and news for ticket holder refunds will follow."
LIV Golf players will not be able to secure world ranking points in the next two events despite a new alliance with the MENA Tour
The Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) on Thursday revealed that no rankings points will be up for grabs in Bangkok this week or Jeddah next week.
That decision comes a day after union between MENA, a Dubai-based tour that has been recognised by OWGR since 2016, and LIV Golf was announced.
MENA explained the alliance would "immediately qualify LIV Golf for OWGR points, starting with the LIV Golf Thailand this week", but that will not be the case.
OWGR said in a statement: "Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) received a communication from the MENA Tour on October 5th, 2022, at 13:05 BST.
"The communication detailed significant changes to the MENA Tour's membership structure along with an outline of the initial series of tournaments in the 2022-23 MENA Tour season.
"OWGR notes that the first two tournaments in this series appeared to be the same as the LIV Golf Invitational Series tournaments in Bangkok and Jeddah. The communication from the MENA Tour included a starting field data file for the Bangkok tournament, confirming that to be the case.
"A review of the changes to the MENA Tour is now under way by the OWGR.
"Notice of these changes given by the MENA Tour is insufficient to allow OWGR to conduct the customary necessary review ahead of the LIV Golf Invitational Bangkok (7-9 October) and LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah (14-16 October).
"Only after the review is complete will a decision be made on awarding points to the MENA Tour's new "Limited Field Tournaments", defined by the MENA Tour in its Regulations as 'any MENA Tour-approved tournament, which comprises of a player field of less than 80 players'.
"Regular official MENA Tour events conducted over 54 or 72 holes with a cut after 36 holes, and its Tour Championship, typically conducted over 54 holes with no cut, remain eligible for inclusion in the OWGR."
All 48 LIV Golf players – including the likes of Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson – last month wrote an open letter to OWGR chairman Peter Dawson requesting points be awarded for both past and future events on the breakaway tour.
They stated that an OWGR without LIV "would be incomplete and inaccurate."
Lewis Hamilton has urged the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) to take action against any team in the event of the budget cap being breached.
Formula One's governing body was due to issue their publication on the 2021 budget cap on Wednesday before announcing a delay, with the outcome now to be shared on October 10.
Widespread reports have suggested that there are two teams guilty of exceeding the cap last season, with speculation mounting one of them is Red Bull, and Mercedes star Hamilton wants the FIA to take firm action against any guilty parties.
"I like to think that if it's being delayed, it's because it's being taken very seriously. It would be bad for the sport if action wasn't taken if there was a breach," he told reporters.
"It is imperative, for transparency, [that punishments are handed out]. We need to continue to have transparency for the fans and the integrity of the sport.
"I know there are a lot of conversations in the background. No one truly knows. There are different numbers and things being said here and there."
Max Verstappen wants to seal the Formula One drivers' title in style with "a perfect weekend" at the Japanese Grand Prix, and he says Red Bull need that.
The reigning champion trailed in seventh last week in Singapore after what he described as "a very messy weekend" and "a prime example of how you don't want a weekend to go".
He had previously won five straight races and recorded 11 victories in 2022, but Verstappen struggled on a soaked Marina Bay Street Circuit.
Still, his lead over second-placed Charles Leclerc in the championship is a commanding 104 points, and that means Verstappen has an opportunity to wrap up the title with four races to spare. Only Michael Schumacher in 2002 (six races to spare) and Nigel Mansell in 1995 (five) have been crowned champion sooner in a season.
Verstappen said Red Bull's close relationship with engine builder Honda, a Japanese firm, would make winning the title this weekend "a little bit extra special".
The Japan race was scrubbed from last year's calendar because of the COVID-19 situation, which Verstappen said was "a shame".
"So that's why we're really looking forward to being back here and then we'll see what happens. We need a perfect weekend, that's for sure," said the 25-year-old.
"It would be very nice if it happens here, but if it doesn't happen here, I will be even more in favour the next race."
Verstappen's second consecutive title is practically a formality at this stage, and if he wins and posts the fastest lap this weekend then he is assured of being champion.
Twelve F1 champions have been crowned after results in the Japanese Grand Prix, with Sebastian Vettel in 2011 the most recent driver to clinch the title at Suzuka.
Verstappen is trying to brush off the importance of the race, saying on Formula1.com: "It doesn't really change anything; you want to have a good weekend and try to maximise everything you can, and of course I need a perfect weekend to be able to clinch the title here but, to be honest, I'm not really thinking about it too much."
Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from the Transylvania Open with a wrist injury, compounding a miserable 2022 for the British number one.
The teenager became an overnight star on the WTA Tour last year when she won the US Open women's singles title in her first appearance at Flushing Meadows.
However, her attempts to follow up that success have been hamstrung by a succession of niggles, with Raducanu currently down at 67th in the world rankings.
Her withdrawal from next week's event in Romania – the country from which her father hails – is just the latest injury problem, with Raducanu having been forced to quit during the semi-finals of last month's Korea Open with a glute problem.
This followed a first-round retirement at the Nottingham Open before Wimbledon, though Raducanu ultimately recovered to reach the second round of the grass-court major.
A first-round exit at the Ostrava Open this week, followed by the latest setback, means Raducanu's season appears effectively over, with the 19-year-old likely to set her focus on regaining full fitness ahead of 2023.
Three-time All-Star Donovan Mitchell admitted his preseason debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers was "definitely weird" following his blockbuster offseason trade from the Utah Jazz.
Mitchell left the Jazz after five seasons in Salt Lake City, opting against a move to the New York Knicks to join an exciting Cavs line-up where he will play in the backcourt alongside Darius Garland.
The Cavs also boast All-Star Jarrett Allen and 2021-22 Rookie of the Year runner-up Evan Mobley along with veteran Kevin Love, offering hope of their first playoffs campaign since 2017-18.
Mitchell played 19 minutes, scoring 16 points on six-for-nine shooting, including three three-pointers along with five assists, in the Cavs' 113-112 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in his first outing for his new franchise.
"Today, I just kind of sat there and had one of those moments where you sit there and look out and see everything, and it's like, 'Wow. It's really here'," Mitchell said.
"Then once you get on the court, basketball is basketball. But all the little things, it's definitely weird. A little different. But I'm excited. It's going the way I thought it would, in a good way.
"It just didn't feel real… it still didn't hit me yet."
Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff was pleased with Mitchell's initial cohesion alongside All-Star point guard Garland.
"I thought it was pretty seamless," Bickerstaff said. "The way they played together, the way the ball moved, everybody got involved.
"As long as we play in the same style we want to play, where it isn't just based on one guy, but based on the team, I think it's going to work out well for us."
The Cavs finished last season with a 44-38 record, missing the playoffs after losing in the Play-In Tournament to the Atlanta Hawks in the number eight seed game.
LeBron James insists he is serious about wanting to own an NBA franchise based in Las Vegas, serving a reminder of his ambitions to league commissioner Adam Silver.
The four-time NBA champion scored 23 points in 17 minutes on Wednesday as the Los Angeles Lakers lost a pre-season road game with the Phoenix Suns in Vegas, at the city's T-Mobile Arena.
James is no stranger to sports club ownership, with stakes in Premier League outfit Liverpool and MLB team Boston Red Sox.
But with his career on the basketball court entering its twilight phase, the 37-year-old doubled down on his desire to own a franchise in Nevada, one of the few states in the American southwest not home to a club.
"I would love to bring a team here at some point," he said, before calling out Silver personally. "That would be amazing. I know Adam is in Abu Dhabi right now, I believe.
"But he probably sees every single interview and transcript that comes through from NBA players. So, I want the team here, Adam. Thank you."
James' hopes are unlikely to materialise in the short term, given he remains under contract with the Lakers through 2025, and must be retired to own a league franchise.
Silver previously also poured cold water on immediate expansion during the NBA Finals, but did praise both Vegas and Seattle as future sites if the league chooses to grow.
"We are not discussing that at this time," Silver said at the time. "As I said before, at some point, this league invariably will expand, but it's not at this moment that we are discussing it.
"We were in Seattle. I'm sorry we are no longer there. Las Vegas has shown itself to be a great sports market as well."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
