Khris Middleton is set to make his return from injury for the Milwaukee Bucks against the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.
The three-time NBA All-Star underwent a procedure to repair torn ligaments in his wrist in July and has yet to play for the Bucks this season.
Middleton's last appearance was back in April when he sprained the medial collateral ligament in his left knee in Game 2 of the opening round of the playoffs against the Chicago Bulls.
The Bucks went on to lose to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semi-finals in the absence of Middleton.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Bucks are about to have one of their star men back, though, when they host the Lakers at Fiserv Forum.
The Bucks sit second in the East having amassed a 15-5 record through 20 games of the 2022-23 NBA season, three games back on the 18-4 Celtics.
Tiger Woods will not pursue surgery on the foot injury that saw him withdraw from this week's Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas.
The 15-time major champion was due to play his first competitive event since missing the cut at The Open back in July but has been suffering with plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
Woods had been scheduled to play three events in December, though it remains to be seen if he will play at all.
The legendary American had been aiming to up his workload having played only three times last season due to the broken leg he sustained in a car accident in February 2021.
He explained that his latest issue will be treated with a "stretch and relax" method rather than going under the knife.
"You don’t want to go down the surgical route," Woods told the Golf Channel. "Injections, surgical, or just stretch and relax, and I chose to stretch and relax.
"Get off your feet, which I have done and continue to do. Also sleep at night with a boot on; try to stretch it out."
The injury, according to the PGA Tour's official website, affects around two million people in the United States and causes a stabbing pain near the heel as a result of an inflammation of a thick band of tissue.
Woods explained how playing full 18-hole rounds is tricky with the injury.
"When you first step out of bed, it's like, 'Oh my God'," he added.
"It's just a long haul. I just can't walk for too long a period of time."
Josh Allen told reporters after Thursday's 24-10 win against the New England Patriots that this year's Buffalo Bills are playing with an added 'sense of urgency' after narrowly missing out on last year's AFC Championship game.
The Bills were too strong for the Patriots, allowing no touchdowns after the first quarter in what turned into a relatively smooth outing on the road in Foxborough.
With the win, the Bills improved their record to an AFC East-leading 9-3, while the 8-3 Miami Dolphins will get a chance to join them if they can defeat the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Despite their strong record, it was only their first win against a divisional opponent this season after previous losses to the Dolphins and New York Jets.
Following three consecutive games away from home, the Bills will now host both the Jets and the Dolphins in back-to-back fixtures, and Allen said the whole squad is itching to get back to Buffalo.
"It's going to be awesome," he said. "We missed out on a home game because we had to leave [due to a snowstorm in Week 11], so I know Bills mafia is chomping at the bit to get back in the stadium with us.
"We're going to need them, this stretch that we've got coming up, we understand it means a lot moving forward. We’ve got to find ways to go win some football games."
He went on to talk about how the Bills are no longer content just being a playoff team, and with the roster they have, they know this season is a golden opportunity to bring home the franchise's first ever Super Bowl.
"I think [what's different] is the sense of urgency we have," he said. "We're 9-3, and everything we want is in front of us.
"Every time we step out onto the field we're trying to be the best version of ourselves, and coach McDermott does a great job of letting us be ourselves.
"We've got a great locker room, guys with a lot of leadership, there's been no panic. Von [Miller] says it all the time – we're not blinking.
"We're just trying to find ways to win football games, no matter what it takes to win a game, that's what we're trying to do."
The former MVP favourite is no longer considered one of the top contenders for the league's most prestigious individual honour after a month-long battle with a lingering elbow injury, but he is not using it as an excuse.
"A lot of time in the training room making sure I'm ready to go, but come game time, that goes to the back of my mind," he said.
"I'm just focused on trying to make plays for this team, whichever way that I can, whether it's running or throwing, and getting it to our guys on the outside.
"We've got some of the best guys in the league, and the more times we can get them the ball, the better it's going to be for us.
"I appreciate who we have in our training room, they've done a tremendous job… they really put in a lot of hours."
With one more win this season, the Bills will have posted four consecutive campaigns of at least 10 victories. The only other time in franchise history that has occurred was from 1990-1993, where they lost four Super Bowls in a row.
The Buffalo Bills were not rattled by an early explosive touchdown, going on to ultimately dominate the New England Patriots 24-10 in Thursday's AFC East showdown.
New England threatened to put up a strong fight against one of the Super Bowl favourites, jumping ahead 7-3 in the first quarter after rookie Marcus Jones took a wide receiver screen 48 yards to the house.
It was just Jones' first offensive snap of his career, with the former college cornerback making a name for himself after his game-winning punt return touchdown against the New York Jets in Week 11.
But that would be the only points the Patriots would put on the board until a consolation field goal with under two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
The middle stages of the contest were entirely one-sided, with Josh Allen connecting on two touchdown passes in the second period to jump out to a 17-7 halftime lead, never looking back.
Allen's first touchdown was a simple one from the eight-yard line, identifying top receiver Stefon Diggs in man coverage before finding him in the back corner of the endzone.
His second was more spectacular, as he left his feet for a jump-pass near the sideline, rifling it back across his body to find Gabriel Davis for another eight-yard touchdown.
Allen completed 22 of his 33 passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns, with his only turnovers coming from a strip-sack by Josh Uche. Diggs caught seven of his nine targets for 92 yards and a score, while Devin Singletary carried 13 times for 51 yards and the game's final touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Buffalo are now 9-3, which their division rivals the Miami Dolphins can match with a win over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
It was a familiar story for the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday as Luka Doncic was the best player on the court, but it was not enough, going down 131-125 against the Detroit Pistons in overtime.
In front of their home fans, the Pistons rode hot-shooting nights from Bojan Bogdanovic and Killian Hayes, combining for 52 points on 20-of-27 shooting to overcome the Slovenian star's brilliance.
Bogdanovic had 30 points with four assists, four rebounds and two steals, while Hayes had 22 points, eight assists and four rebounds, while starring in the overtime period.
Doncic, the league-leader in points per game, raised his average to 33.5 with his 35 points on 13-of-25 shooting, adding 10 assists an five rebounds, but he hit just two of his six free throws, proving costly.
With Doncic essentially being a one-man show in Dallas, the Pistons used that against the Mavericks in overtime, consistently trapping him as soon as he crossed mid-court to force a quick pass, deciding they would live with whatever resulted from other players shooting the ball.
The Pistons approached their offense in the complete opposite fashion, with six players attempting between 10 and 15 field goal attempts each, and their unpredictability forced the Dallas defense to play one-on-one.
Taking advantage of his hot hand, Hayes put the game to bed as he turned a 125-125 tie into a win with back-to-back pull-up three-pointers to stick the dagger into the visiting Mavs.
The tanking Pistons are now 6-18, while the Mavericks, who are coming off a Western Conference Finals appearance, fall to 10-11.
The Atlanta Hawks learned Thursday that their 125-108 win over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday came at a cost.
De'Andre Hunter exited in the first quarter with a right hip flexor strain and will be re-evaluated in one week, while John Collins will miss at least two weeks due to a left ankle sprain sustained on a dunk attempt just before halftime.
Tests on Collins' ankle on Thursday confirmed the severity of the sprain, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
Hunter is third on the Hawks in scoring at 14.9 points per game, while Collins ranks fourth at 12.3 points per contest and second in rebounds at 7.5 per game.
While Atlanta’s lineup took a hit with the injuries to Hunter and Collins, reinforcements are on the way with Bogdan Bogdanovic expected to make his season debut soon, following his knee surgery in the offseason.
Bogdanovic averaged 15.1 points last season and his 169 made three-pointers were second on Atlanta behind Trae Young.
In addition to the imminent return of Bogdanovic, the Hawks also may have caught a break with the timing of the injuries to Hunter and Collins. Atlanta has the easiest strength of schedule this month, with its 14 December opponents sporting a .422 combined winning percentage.
Wednesday’s win snapped a season-worst three-game losing streak for Atlanta, who own a one-game lead over the Washington Wizards for first place in the Southeast Division.
The Golden State Warriors (11-11) have a golden opportunity to climb back above .500 when they host the 9-12 Chicago Bulls on Thursday.
Both teams entered the season with lofty expectations, but have sputtered out of the gates, struggling in areas they are meant to excel in.
With four championships since 2015, the Warriors have been widely regarded as the greatest shooting team the game has ever seen, but the underlying factor of their greatest years has always been their defense.
Boasting the league's best defensive efficiency in their 2014-15 championship season, second-best for their 2016-17 title, and 11th for their 2017-18 crown – the Warriors rediscovered their dominance on that end of the floor this past season to finish as the second-best defense en route to another ring.
That has cratered this campaign, with Golden State currently allowing 113.4 points per 100 possessions for the 21st-ranked defense.
What that means is that some of the Warriors' point totals from their eighth-ranked offense are going to waste, having scored over 110 points in seven of their 11 losses so far.
Meanwhile, the Bulls have committed to offensively-minded scorers DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic and Zach Lavine as their core trio, but currently own the 22nd-best offense.
In a clash between two sides struggling to establish an identity, the result could simply come down to which side's X-factor shows up – or more specifically, which one shoots the lights out.
PIVOTAL PERFORMERS
Golden State Warriors - Klay Thompson
Klay Thompson is a Warriors legend, a future Hall-of-Famer and one of the greatest shooters in the history of the NBA – but he has never been less efficient than he is right now.
However, when Thompson is feeling it this season, the Warriors win. Shooting 35.5 per cent from the field and 32.5 per cent from deep in losses, Thompson's numbers skyrocket to 43.7 per cent from the field and 44.7 per cent on three-pointers in the 10 wins he has played in.
Only the Boston Celtics score a higher percentage of their points from three-pointers (41.7 per cent) than the Warriors (41.2 per cent), so it makes sense that when their secondary sharpshooter catches fire, good things happen.
Chicago Bulls - Zach Lavine
While the Warriors rely on a heavy dose of three-pointers to put up their points, the Bulls are the opposite, leading the league in their percentage of points that come from the mid-range (14.6 per cent).
This is primarily due to DeRozan's affinity for the mid-range, and in turn, it leaves them 28th in the percentage of points that come from the three-point line (27.4 per cent).
To outgun the Warriors, you need to score big, and the Bulls' best bet to get hot from deep is Zach Lavine.
Making 2.8 threes per game, he is the only Bulls player averaging more than Coby White's 1.5, and his win/loss splits are eerily similar to Thompson's.
He is hitting 3.6 threes at 43.9 per cent in wins, and 2.1 threes at 26.4 per cent in losses, indicating his outsized importance and responsibility for the interior-heavy Bulls offense.
KEY BATTLE - Can the Bulls slow down the Warriors' ball movement?
While the Bulls' offense has been disappointing, their defense has actually been a pleasant surprise, climbing from the 23rd-ranked unit last season up to the 11th-best this time around.
Golden State's porous defense and second-highest pace in the league could provide a perfect environment for the Bulls to put up a big score, so it may come down to if they can force Stephen Curry to beat them by himself.
While Curry has been spectacular, averaging 31.4 points, the Warriors lead the league in assists per game at 29.7, so if the Bulls can figure out how to force the Warriors into isolations and restrict their quick passing, they can force the reigning champions to play the game out of their comfort zone.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
This will be the first meeting between the Warriors and Bulls this campaign after two fixtures in the 2021-22 season – resulting in two convincing Golden State wins.
The champions-in-waiting hammered the Bulls 119-93 last November, before following it up with a 138-96 thrashing in January, making it 10 consecutive victories against Chicago dating back to 2017.
Viktor Hovland is looking to win back-to-back Hero World Challenge titles and started his week on the right track, finishing Thursday's opening round in a four-way tie for the lead at three under.
The small field boasts 20 of the PGA Tour's top talents, with Tiger Woods hosting the event at Albany Golf Club in the Bahamas.
Winner of the 2021 edition, Hovland posted an impressive eagle on the par-four 14th hole to go with his two birdies and one bogey to share the lead through 18 holes.
Norway's top golfer is joined by 20-year-old South Korean phenom Tom Kim, America's Collin Morikawa, and Austria's Sepp Straka, with the latter coming in as the late replacement for Woods following his withdrawal due to plantar fasciitis.
Kim, who already has two PGA Tour wins under his belt, was the only of the foursome to not make a single bogey.
They are one stroke clear of Sam Burns alone in fifth at two under, with Cameron Young, Max Homa and Tommy Fleetwood tied for sixth at one under.
World number two Scottie Scheffler is joined by two-time major champion Justin Thomas as part of the group at even par, while Jon Rahm is at one over, and Matt Fitzpatrick is at two over.
Corey Conners is alone in 19th at three over, and Jordan Spieth is dead last and the only player at four over.
The Buffalo Bills will be without Von Miller for at least a month after placing the star pass rusher on injured reserve shortly before Thursday’s game against the New England Patriots.
Miller, who injured his right knee in Buffalo’s Thanksgiving Day win at Detroit, will be sidelined for a minimum of four games, though Bills general manager Brandon Beane told reporters the team is optimistic the eight-time Pro Bowler will return before the end of the regular season.
The 33-year-old Miller sustained the injury when his knee bent awkwardly as he was stepped on by a Lions lineman last week, but avoided any torn ligaments and said on Tuesday he was hoping to return after missing only one game.
"He's a competitor, that’s why we love him. That's why he’s so great," Beane said. "The competitor in him – if he could wheel it out there tonight, he would do it.
"We just think in talking to the medical people that the best decision right now is to give this time, and that gives him the best opportunity to help us down the stretch."
Miller will be eligible to return for Buffalo’s final two regular-season games, a Monday-night clash with the Bengals in Cincinnati on January 2 and a rematch with the Patriots in Buffalo six days later.
The NFL’s active leader with 123.5 sacks, Miller leads the Bills in that category with eight in 11 games in 2022. It is the eighth consecutive season the 11-year veteran has registered eight or more sacks.
Miller, who signed a six-year, $120million contract with the Bills in March after helping the Los Angeles Rams win the Super Bowl, also has been quite durable over the course of his career.
A torn ACL did limit him to nine games with the Denver Broncos in 2013, but he has missed three games in seven-plus seasons since.
Kai Havertz says Germany's World Cup exit is akin to a "horror movie" after they were eliminated despite victory over Costa Rica.
The Chelsea forward's double was in vain as his team's 4-2 win was not enough to secure a knockout spot in Group E, with Japan's 2-1 triumph over Spain sending both nations through instead.
It marks the end of another dour World Cup adventure for Germany, who failed to keep a clean sheet for the 12th major tournament match in a row.
Havertz, who came off the bench to spark hope, acknowledged the pain and frustration of seeing his side come up short, despite playing all their cards in their final game.
"It is bitter for all of us," he stated. "We said at half-time that we shouldn't take it easy, that anything can happen. We didn't expect that to happen. It's like a horror movie.
"We saw the live table in the stadium, we recognised the situation from spectators and the reactions on the bench.
"There was still hope, because we assumed Spain would score another goal. Then we saw on the screen that their match was over, and that was it."
Germany's exit in Qatar marks the second successive World Cup where they have failed to get out of the group stages, and coupled with a last-16 loss at Euro 2020, makes for three tournaments on the bounce with poor results.
With the nation set to host European Championship in just over 18 months' time, Havertz understands the task of reigniting pride in their team will require a degree of soul-searching.
"If three tournaments in a row, you go out early, it makes you wonder what is going wrong," he added. "We need to change something. We are aware of that.
"When it counts, we didn't perform. We need to be honest with ourselves. Over the past five years, things haven't gone right, and it is our own fault. We are to blame."
Head coach Hansi Flick, in his first major tournament since succeeding Joachim Low, praised Havertz's contribution, but stressed his disappointment at their missed chances in Qatar.
"If I look at positives, Kai turned the game around," he added. "We can leave the pitch and go home with a victory. But if you look at the matches, it is our fault.
"We had chances against Spain and against Japan. You have to take them and score goals. There were lots of individual mistakes, and that is what makes me angry."
Deshaun Watson vowed to focus on football after deflecting questions on his suspension as he prepares for his first game with the Cleveland Browns.
Watson was handed an 11-game suspension and a $5million fine following sexual assault and misconduct allegations. The 27-year-old has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and is facing no criminal charges.
He has now completed that ban, meaning he is set to play for the first time in 700 days on Sunday.
The quarterback will be taking on the Houston Texans, the team he represented at the time of his last NFL game.
Speaking on Thursday, Watson made clear he was focusing on the game, rather than facing questions relating to his suspension.
"I understand that you guys have a lot of questions. But with my legal team and my clinical team, there's only football questions I can really address at this time," he told reporters.
Asked why he agreed to the suspension, he replied: "I was just trying whatever I could do to play football in 2022.
"Most of the settlement stuff with the NFL was mostly my agency and legal team. I had no control. My main focus was doing everything I needed to do to play this year."
A return to action in Houston could provide a fierce atmosphere for Watson to cope with, but that is not something he is thinking about.
"Like I said, I'm focusing on just being the starting quarterback and executing the game plan," he said. "That's my main focus."
The Browns traded for Watson in March before signing him to a fully guaranteed $230m five-year deal.
Alex Palou, the 2021 IndyCar champion, has been named as one of McLaren's reserve drivers for the 2023 Formula One season.
The 25-year-old, who ran in testing with the outfit across the 2022 season, is set to balance his time in the cockpit with his schedule in IndyCar.
Earlier this year, Palou was involved in a dispute over his future, with McLaren and then-current team Ganassi both suggesting he was under contract for next year with them.
After the latter initially filed a lawsuit against the racer, it was settled for him to test, though now the Spaniard makes the step up inside McLaren's team structure.
"I'm excited to be part of the McLaren team as one of their reserve drivers in 2023," Palou said in a statement.
"I can't wait for the involvement with next year's car.
"I look forward to continuing my development as a driver and I appreciate the trust McLaren have in me with this new role next year."
McLaren were involved in a dispute over new driver Oscar Piastri too, after the latter left Alpine amid a bitter fallout over his future.
The Australian will succeed Daniel Ricciardo for the team on a contract through 2024, and will partner Lando Norris, with McLaren yet to confirm the remainder of their reserve driver pool.
Sunshine Girls Captain Jhaniele Fowler was named the Suncorp Super Netball Player of the Year for the fifth year in a row at the Australian Netball Awards Ceremony on Thursday.
The 33-year-old goal shooter led all players 1668.5 total points, 929 goals and 55 offensive rebounds on her way to helping the West Coast Fever to second place in the league table with 32 points from their twelve games, eight behind champions the Melbourne Vixens.
Fowler was also named to the Suncorp Super Netball Team of the Year. The team also included Fowler's Sunshine Girls teammates Shamera Sterling at Goal Keeper and Latanya Wilson at Goal Defence. Sterling and Wilson, both members of the Adelaide Thunderbirds, finished first and third in interceptions with 52 and 31, respectively. Sterling was also fourth in total points with 1177.5.
Tyson Fury's co-promoter Bob Arum is confident an agreement for a fight with Oleksandr Usyk can be made "speedily" if the Gypsy King can see off Derek Chisora.
The WBC heavyweight championship will be on the line in Saturday's meeting at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with the two Brits locking horns in a trilogy bout.
Few had this fight top of their wishlist, with fans instead keen for a unification bout against Usyk or a 'Battle of Britain' clash with Anthony Joshua.
However, a meeting with Usyk remains in the pipeline, Arum has said, though he has warned Chisora has the credentials to cause Fury problems.
"I don't see any reason why the Usyk fight with Tyson Fury can't be made speedily," he said.
"That fight will happen next unless Mr Chisora lands his punch. Don't discount Chisora. Chisora's a hell of a fighter. He has a tremendous punch.
"He gave Usyk life and death. You can't in this business count your chickens before they're hatched. Chisora will answer back. It's a great, great fight. It really has a lot of interest.
"Two big heavyweights getting in the ring trying to knock each other's head off. Nothing is more exciting."
Underdog Chisora is looking to make a statement with a knockout win against Fury and made it clear he will come out of the blocks flying with an aggressive approach in the opening rounds.
"On Saturday I'm going to go to war. There's no two ways about it. I want to take what's his and make it mine. Physically and mentally," he declared.
"I can guarantee you, you are going to love the whole show we are going to put up. It's not going to be stinker, it's going to be a great fight.
"We want to give you the best first round in the heavyweight game forever. We need the first round to be electric, so the place will be buzzing. "I'm prepared to do it. We shook on it."
Chris Robshaw is convinced Eddie Jones remains the right person to lead England at next year's Rugby World Cup and drew comparisons to Gareth Southgate's success in football.
The Australian endured a difficult November campaign, with defeat to South Africa in their final game capping a worst calendar year performance for the team since 2008.
With the sport's showpiece tournament set to kick off in France next September, England have 10 months to try and play their way into form and go one better than their run to final in Japan in 2019 where they were downed by the Springboks.
Robshaw acknowledged it has been a bruising year for England but believes Jones is the right man for the job, likening him to Three Lions boss Southgate, who has defied critics twice in major tournaments.
"I have been in these situations and the autumn can be tough because you are playing against the best teams in the world," he said at the launch of the Robshaw Kerslake Foundation he has set up with wife Camilla.
"It is about taking your medicine and thinking, okay, in this competition and in this series we weren't quite good enough, but we can come back stronger.
"We also have to learn to move forward, you can't look down on it too much because there are still positives to come from it, and we need to think about how we can be better next time we meet.
"They were saying the same thing about Gareth Southgate and the England football team and now look at how they have played in this World Cup, they have been superb so far.
"In sport, things change very quickly, and I very much believe Eddie is the right man to lead the squad.
"From my experience, he is the best man-manager I have ever worked with and his ability to make players better and better.
"He is someone who will definitely go away and study what went right and very much importantly, what went wrong and why it didn't work.
"He will want to go back out there and prove people wrong, and I have no doubt he is the right man."
LeBron James has questioned why the media have not asked him about the controversial photo of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
The Washington Post published a photograph last month of Jones, as a 14-year-old, amid a crowd of white pupils attempting to block black students from North Little Rock High School in 1957.
The now-80-year-old says he was merely an observer and did not engage in discrimination, during a period where US schools were undergoing desegregation.
Speaking after the Los Angeles Lakers' 128-109 win over the Portland Trail Blazers however, James asked why reporters had not asked for his opinion on the matter, in contrast to the Kyrie Irving scandal earlier this season.
"I got one question for you guys before you guys leave," he said. "I was thinking when I was on my way over here, I was wondering why I haven't [had] a question from you guys about the Jerry Jones photo.
"But when the Kyrie [Irving] thing was going on, you guys were quick to ask us questions about that."
Irving was suspended by the Brooklyn Nets in early November after posting links to material containing anti-Semitic depictions, including a documentary.
"When I watch Kyrie talk and he says, 'I know who I am, but I want to keep the same energy when we're talking about my people and the things that we've been through,' and that Jerry Jones photo is one of those moments that our people, black people, have been through in America," James continued.
"I feel like as a black man, as a black athlete, as someone with power and a platform, when we do something wrong, or something that people don't agree with, it's on every single tabloid, every single news coverage, it's on the bottom ticker. It's asked about every single day.
"But it seems like to me that the whole Jerry Jones situation, it's just been buried under 'Oh, it happened. Okay, we just move on.'
"I was just kind of disappointed that I haven't received that question from you guys."
Kyler Murray has fired back at criticism from former Arizona Cardinals team-mate Patrick Peterson, accusing him of using his name to grow podcast numbers.
It has been a tough season for quarterback Murray and the Cardinals who are now 4-8 for the season following a dramatic 25-24 defeat to the Los Angeles Chargers last weekend.
Following that loss, Murray drew more attention to the reported tensions between himself and head coach Kliff Kingsbury when he said the Cardinals were "schematically f****d". Earlier this season, the two were involved in a heated exchange during a win over the New Orleans Saints.
Cornerback Peterson, who played with Murray for two seasons and is now with the Minnesota Vikings, said on the 'All Things Covered' podcast: "Kyler Murray don't care about nobody but Kyler Murray. That's just a matter of fact."
He added that Kingsbury will wind up as a scapegoat for the Cardinals' struggles, saying: "Ain't no maybe, he will. He will be. He will be. And the crazy thing about it, the guy who hired him will still have a job."
Murray took exception to Peterson's jibes and issued a blunt riposte on social media.
He wrote: "This isn't true…you on some weird s***, you got my number, if you really felt like this as a 'big bro' or 'mentor' you supposed to call me and tell me, not drag me so your podcast can grow…"
DeShaun Watson has shown a lack of remorse and should have been suspended by the NFL for at least a year, according to the president of anti-sexual assault organisation RAINN.
Scott Berkowitz spoke to Stats Perform as Watson prepares to make his Cleveland Browns debut.
Watson was handed an 11-game suspension and a $5million fine following sexual assault and misconduct allegations. The 27-year-old has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and is facing no criminal charges.
The ban has meant the star quarterback has yet to debut for the Browns after his March trade from the Houston Texans, which was followed by a lucrative new contract in Cleveland.
The NFL had initially hit Watson with a six-game ban before the punishment was extended. Berkowitz was happy to see that decision taken but says there is still work to be done.
"There's no length of suspension that would make up for the damage that he did to all those women. We initially advocated for a year suspension, which I think would have been appropriate," Berkowitz told Stats Perform.
"But 11's a whole lot better than six. So, it is what it is, and he'll be back on the field. And hopefully, with some different behaviour going forward.
"It [Watson's return] was bound to come eventually. But I certainly wished this suspension had been a little longer.
"But I just appreciate that the NFL added to the initial recommendation, at least, and made it longer than it initially looked like it was going to be."
Berkowitz said he can appreciate the need for second chances, but he claims Watson has not truly accepted any wrongdoing.
Watson has settled 23 of the 24 lawsuits against him.
"I understand second chances, I think that is something as a society we need to offer folks. But usually, there's a requirement that there's remorse and that they make things better," Berkowitz said.
"I think in this case, the day the suspension was announced, I recall he first put out a quote that had been written by the team that said the right things and then he immediately followed that up with what he really thought, which is that he doesn't think he did anything wrong.
"I don't know how you talk about forgiveness to someone who doesn't feel any remorse."
Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam said on August 1 that "Deshaun is remorseful that this situation has caused much heartache to many and he will continue the work needed to show who he is on and off the field".
In a remarkable coincidence, Watson – who has a fully guaranteed $230million five-year deal with Cleveland – is set to make his Browns bow against the Texans on Sunday.
During five years in Houston (the last of which in the 2021 season Watson did not make a single appearance), he twice helped the Texans to the playoffs and was a three-time Pro-Bowler.
Berkowitz does not expect Watson to receive an overly enthusiastic reaction from the home crowd.
"I suspect it won't be a hero's greeting, or I hope it won't. You never know when a star comes back to their hometown," Berkowitz said.
"But, you know, I hope that the reaction takes into account the terrible things he's done. It's hard to be enthusiastic for rooting for a guy who's done the things that he was accused of doing."
However, Berkowitz did acknowledge the reception from Browns fans moving forward will likely depend on Watson's performances on the field.
"I'd like it to be taken into account, his actions, but I'm realistic, that's once he gets going if he plays well, that the memory of that, unfortunately, is going to fade pretty quickly," he said.
"Most fans of most teams have learned to put personalities aside and put that behaviour aside, unfortunately, and, once they're playing well, they start cheering for the guy.
"And we're all guilty of that. So, there's always that tension, when your team is putting up people who you need to win but you don't feel comfortable rooting for personally."
Devin Booker lauded the support of the Phoenix Suns' adoring fans after being serenaded with chants of "MVP" during his 51-point showing against the Chicago Bulls.
Having put up 44 points in Monday's win over the Sacramento Kings, Booker continued his hot streak as the Suns secured a sixth victory on the bounce, downing the Bulls 132-113.
The Footprint Arena resonated with chants for Booker to land the MVP prize, and the 26-year-old was loving it.
"It's the best," Booker said about the home crowd.
"I don't know how many sell-out crowds that is in a row, but it's impressive.
"Mondays, Tuesdays, Saturdays, it doesn't matter what day of the week it is. They show up and show out."
Booker added 26 of his 51 points in the third quarter, including making five-of-five from three-point range.
It was the fourth 25-point quarter in Booker's career, tied with Kobe Bryant for second most in the past 25 years.
Booker shot at 80 per cent from the field, making six-of-seven from three-point range, while he also added four rebounds and six assists before sitting out most of the final quarter.
It marked Booker's fourth career 50-point game, which is the most in franchise history.
"It felt like a double-sized rim out there," Booker said. "If I rise up, it's going in."
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