Zion Williamson impressed in his return for the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday after missing the entire 2021-22 season, although he says he "couldn't show them everything".
The 2019 NBA Draft top overall pick put in a 15-minute cameo, scoring 13 points with four rebounds as the Pelicans won 129-125 over the Chicago Bulls in their preseason opener.
Williamson, 22, had not played competitively for the Pelicans for 514 days, dating back to May 2021, having sat out last season with a foot injury.
The power forward, who said he felt like he was at his best again at last week's media day, was impressive during his brief appearance, where he teamed up with an unfamiliar Pelicans line-up to that which he last played with following numerous personnel changes.
"Couldn't show them everything," Williamson told reporters. "But just kind of getting a feel for it again. Find spots. Picking and choosing where I want to attack.
"But I got a new team since the last time I played. I'm still learning some of the guys. Today we were able to click.
"I feel like if we can do that for the rest of these preseason games, I feel we'll be in pretty good shape."
The Pelicans struggled in Williamson's absence last season, missing the playoffs with a 36-46 record under head coach Willie Green.
"He looked good and he's just going to continue to get better," Green said about Williamson.
"That's what we know about Z. He works at it. He's a competitor. And you know it doesn't look like it, but he had 13 points, four rebounds in 15 minutes. That's the type of work he puts in on the floor."
Williamson averaged 27.0 points with 61.1 percent shooting, 3.7 assists and 7.2 rebounds across 61 games in the 2020-21 season before his foot injury. He only played 24 times in his rookie season in 2019-20 before becoming an NBA All-Star in 2021.
Aaron Judge stands alone at the top of home run history in the American League after breaking Roger Maris' 61-year single-season homer record with his 62nd blast in the New York Yankees' 3-2 loss to the Texas Rangers on Tuesday.
Judge, who had hit just one homer in his previous 13 games coming in, blasted a 1-1 slider off Rangers' pitcher Jesus Tinoco over the left-field fence for a lead-off homer to break the mark.
The Yankees outfielder's home run was his 62nd of the season, surpassing Maris' 61-homer mark from 1961, which he had matched last Wednesday against the Toronto Blue Jays.
The blast came in the Yankees' penultimate game of the regular season, with Judge's 62 homers sitting seventh for most in a single season in MLB history.
Ahead of Judge are only three players, all from 1997 to 2001; Barry Bonds (73 in 2001), Mark McGwire (70 in 1999 and 65 in 1999) and Sammy Sosa (66 in 1998, 64 in 2001, 63 in 1999).
The home run means 11 of Judge's past 14 blasts have come on the road. Gerrit Cole also made franchise history, reaching 257 strikeouts for the most in a single season for the Yankees.
The Yankees were beaten after the Rangers added two fifth-inning runs, with the visitors having won the first game in the double header 5-4 when Judge went one-for-five with a single.
Braves complete turnaround to clinch NL East
Following their sweep over the New York Mets, the Atlanta Braves clinched their fifth straight National League (NL) East title with a 2-1 victory over the Miami Marlins.
William Contreras drove in the go-ahead run in the fifth inning with an infield single, earning the reigning world champions a first-round bye as the NL second seed. The achievement comes after the Braves had trailed the Mets by 10-and-a-half games in June.
Jake Odorizzi had seven strikeouts across five innings, while Kenley Jansen recorded his 41st save with a perfect ninth inning. Ronald Acuna Jr hit a second-inning single to give the Braves an early lead.
AL seeds locked in as Verlander stars for Astros
The Seattle Mariners locked in the number five seed in the AL playoffs with a 7-6 walkoff win over the Detroit Tigers, highlighted by back-up catcher Luis Torrens pitching the 10th inning.
Entering extras ahead of the postseason, the Mariners shuffled their deck, with Torrens becoming the first position player other than Shohei Ohtani to earn a win since John Baker in 2014 for the Chicago Cubs. Abraham Toro's sacrifice fly allowed Carlos Santana to score the walkoff run.
That result meant the Tampa Bay Rays were locked for the third AL Wild Card spot, not helped by a 6-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox where Xander Bogaerts delivered a fifth-inning grand slam.
Meanwhile, the Houston Astros go into the postseason as the AL top seed after a 10-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies where Cy Young Award favourite Justin Verlander had 10 K's and kept the opposition hitless until the ninth inning.
History-maker Aaron Judge admits finally breaking Roger Maris' American League single-season home run record is a "big relief" after launching his 62nd blast against the Texas Rangers on Tuesday.
Judge's lead-off homer for the New York Yankees surpassed Maris' 61-year record, having matched the mark last Wednesday, going five games without a homer leading up.
The Yankees outfielder's 62nd home run for the season came in their penultimate regular season game, putting him seventh all-time for homers in a single season.
Judge had already exceeded Babe Ruth's mark from 1927 of 60 home runs in a season, before getting past Maris with 61 from 1961.
"It's a big relief," Judge said. "I think that everyone can sit back down in their seats and watch the ball game, you know? But it's been a fun ride so far.
"Getting a chance to do this, with the team we've got, the guys surrounding me, the constant support from my family whose been with me through this whole thing, it's been a great honor.
"Getting a chance to have my name next to someone as great as Roger Maris, Babe Ruth, those guys, is incredible."
Judge's pursuit of his 62nd home run has felt like a circus with the anticipation surrounding him every time he was at bat, from both the dugout and the stands.
The outfielder's teammates gathered at the home plate after his historic home run to congratulate him, before receiving a standing ovation from the Texas crowd.
"Pretty surreal," Judge said. "Just like in Toronto, it was pretty awesome, having their support. I think, in Texas, they were a little more excited, they could finally exhale.
"At home, in the dugout, I can see right in and see all the guys sitting at the top steps. Here on the road, they are behind me, so I didn't see the 40-plus people sitting in the dugout.
"To finally see them run out on the field, and get a chance to hug them all, that's what it's about for me."
Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole, who made his own history with a franchise record 257th strikeout in a single season, was glowing in praise of Judge.
"Even just to tie the record, let alone break it is a bit surreal," Cole said. "And obviously, on a night like tonight, it's just like, 'Woah'… It's hard to put into words."
Judge has hit the most home runs in a single season of any center fielder in MLB history, previously 56 held by Hack Wilson (1930) and Ken Griffey Jr (1997 and 1998).
The Yankee's latest blast means he is 16 homers ahead of the MLB's next best, Kyle Schwarber with 46. Judge's 16-homer lead is the largest since Jimmie Foxx's 17-homer margin over Ruth from 1932.
Judge's 62 home runs have totaled a distance of 25,520 feet which is nearly five miles, and a single-season record since Statcast started tracking that in 2015, exceeding teammate Giancarlo Stanton's 2017 mark of 24,641 feet.
Two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard says his body is feeling good after making his return to NBA action after 476 days out in the Los Angeles Clippers' opening preseason game.
Leonard, who has not played for more than 15 months, was on court for 16 minutes and contributed 11 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals in a 102-97 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.
The five-time NBA All-Star had been out since undergoing ACL surgery on his right knee in July 2021 after succumbing to the injury in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Utah Jazz.
"The body feels good," Leonard told reporters. "Obviously, I am not going to be playing 35 minutes, 38 minutes to start, so it is going to be a little shaky early, probably. But like I said, it is a journey, it's a process, and that is what I am about."
Leonard drilled a three-pointer only 15 seconds into his return game, which he said was a great experience.
"It was great," Leonard said. "Just being able to put all that hard work that I did throughout the 14, 16 months, just able to put it to test and playing against NBA talent, it was good.
"Just being out there with the guys and talking, I missed it. It was a great experience for me."
Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue was pleased with Leonard's return, with the small forward planning to play their next preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday.
"Offensively, Kawhi, I thought he got a little tired," Lue said.
"But he got some shots he normally makes. But just seeing him out there on the floor just makes a big difference for our team."
Three-time NBA All-Star Ben Simmons says he is simply grateful be back on the court after making his long-awaited debut for the Brooklyn Nets in preseason on Monday.
Simmons played 19 minutes in the Nets' 127-108 loss to his former franchise, the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday.
The Australian guard scored six points with five assists and four rebounds in his return, after mental health and injury issues meant he did not play at all last season, even after being traded from the 76ers to the Nets in February.
"I'm grateful just to be able to step on that floor," Simmons said. "Step on an NBA floor again. I had a lot of fun out there.
"That's the one thing, I thought I was going to be nervous, but I wasn't nervous. I was excited."
Simmons' return, which was rusty at times, marked 470 days between games for the 2018 NBA Rookie of the Year.
It is also the first time the Nets have fielded Simmons alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, offering excitement for the franchise.
"Ben's playing with a totally different unit than he has in the past, different style," Nets head coach Steve Nash said.
"It's going to be ugly at times, but I thought as the half wore on you definitely started to see glimpses of the potential. The way the ball moved. The way they were hounding the basketball defensively.
"I thought Ben looked pretty good overall and grew into the game through the half."
Simmons admitted that working alongside Durant and Irving would take time but he was excited by the learning process as the Nets build cohesion.
"It was fun messing up because I know how good we can be," Simmons said. "And seeing just different looks and opportunities there with Kevin and Ky and Joe [Harris]. Seeing where they want the ball and just how things are going to work and flow.
"But the only way you learn is to make mistakes so I had a few out there tonight and I can go back and watch film and say I know what I did wrong and how to fix that, so it's all a learning process for me so it's good."
Dak Prescott cannot grip a football, according to Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, but as soon as he is healthy enough to play, Cooper Rush will be headed back to the bench – regardless of how many wins he has racked up.
Rush will reportedly make his fourth straight start since Prescott suffered a fracture near his right thumb in the fourth quarter of the Cowboys’ 19-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the season opener.
Jones said during an interview with 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday that Prescott’s surgically repaired thumb is improving but he cannot grip a football “well enough to play.”
So that means Rush will get the call against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
The Cowboys have won all three games with Rush under center, and although just less than two weeks ago Jones said he would welcome a quarterback controversy between the two because that meant the team was winning, he walked back on that idea Tuesday.
Jones was asked when Prescott is deemed healthy, would the Cowboys stick with Rush if he continues to pile up victories.
"No. No. As I see it right today," Jones said.
The undrafted Rush has completed 55 of 89 passes (61.8 percent) for 673 yards while throwing four touchdowns and no interceptions in those three consecutive victories.
With Sunday’s 25-10 win over the Washington Commanders, Rush became the first quarterback in franchise history to win his first four career starts.
Jones admitted that he never thought the Cowboys would have beaten the Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants and Commanders in the last three weeks.
“No. No, I did not,” he said.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said on Monday that Prescott would need to put in an entire week of practice before he could play, and Jones remains hopeful he will be back practicing before long.
"I don't know that you could ask for better news technically, physically in how it's responding, how it's healing so to speak," Jones said.
"So all of those things are on go and I don't know that as we bid bye to each day if considering the injury, considering the location of the injury, I don't know that you could make any more progress.
"There's some things here about healing that again I often say only the man upstairs knows how that works, but he'll have a big week and he'll be hard on himself getting it ready to go."
Aaron Judge is officially the home run king after blasting his 62nd homer to break Roger Maris' long-standing mark for the American League's (AL) single-season record.
The New York Yankees outfielder crushed the historic homer into left field in the first inning of Tuesday's game on the road against the Texas Rangers, their penultimate regular-season game.
Judge had matched Maris' 61-homer AL and Yankees record last Wednesday with a blast against the Toronto Blue Jays.
However, the Yankee had endured 23 plate appearances or five games since without a home run but he broke the drought early from Rangers pitcher Jesus Tinoco.
Maris' record had stood since 1961, edging Babe Ruth's previous record of 60 in 1927.
Only three players have scored more homers in a single season for any franchise than Judge; Barry Bonds (73 in 2001), Mark McGwire (70 in 1999 and 65 in 1999) and Sammy Sosa (66 in 1998, 64 in 2001, 63 in 1999). Those three players all achieved the feat during the steroid era.
Belinda Bencic fought back to defeat Eugenie Bouchard in an Ostrava Open first-round contest that took over two and a half hours to settle.
Bouchard took the first set, but Bencic came from behind to advance with a 6-7 (7-9) 6-1 6-4 victory on Tuesday.
Eighth seed Jelena Ostapenko, runner-up in the Korea Open, suffered a premature exit as Aliaksandra Sasnovich consigned the former French Open champion to a 6-2 6-2 defeat.
Emma Raducanu also went out in straight sets, with Daria Kasatkina beating the 2021 US Open champion 7-5 6-4.
Catherine McNally blitzed to a 6-1 6-2 victory over Anna Blinkova, while Alycia Parks progressed past Karolina Pliskova to secure the first top-20 win of her career.
Top seed Ons Jabeur swept aside Ann Li with relative ease in a 6-2 6-3 victory at the Jasmin Open to reach the last 16.
Veronika Kudermetova, the second seed, breezed past Varvara Gracheva with a commanding 6-1 6-0 win.
Anastasia Potapova, Petra Martic, Magdalena Frech and Harriet Dart were among the other victors.
The Ryder Cup is "bigger than any individual player", says Europe captain Luke Donald, while Team USA skipper Zach Johnson has confirmed Tiger Woods will feature in some capacity.
Next year's tournament, set to take place at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club near Rome between September and October, is the first to come amid the bitter LIV Golf breakaway in the sport.
Donald succeeded Henrik Stenson after the latter was sacked for defecting from the PGA Tour, while Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Cameron Smith are among those who have also moved to the Saudi-backed league.
Questions have been raised over whether LIV Golf players will be considered for teams, with Zach Johnson indicating they would not be eligible for the USA, but Donald has now spoken of his hope the tournament will "unify" golf.
"The Ryder Cup is bigger than any individual player, and it's a great way to unify everyone," Donald said.
"I think it will continue to do that. What's so great about the Ryder Cup is that it does garner an interest in a new generation of players and fans to this game. "
Woods, an eight-time Ryder Cup veteran with Team USA, will be involved, even if he is not a playing member.
"I can tell you right now, I don't know whether he'll be here next year, but he will be part of this team in some capacity. He already is frankly," said Zach Johnson.
"I can't put this mildly; he loves the Ryder Cup. He wants to be a part of it as best he can. He and I will be in constant communication."
Jamaican mixed martial artist Randy Brown secured a unanimous decision win over Brazilian veteran Francisco Trinaldo at UFC Fight Night: Dern vs Yan in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Trinaldo, 44, went into the fight with a 28-8 record in MMA and 18-7 in the UFC, including wins in his last two outings.
“Trinaldo was a heck of a test. I don’t think that was my best work. I know my coaches know that and I think the fans watching at home know it as well,” he said in the post-fight interview.
“I’m excited. He was a true veteran, absolute honor to just get in there and mix it up with him. I definitely felt that experience in there so much love to Trinaldo and I appreciate that,” he added.
Brown, 32, is now 16-4 in his MMA career (9-4 in the UFC) and has four wins in a row in a loaded welterweight division and made it known where his focus is going forward.
“It doesn’t really matter to me to be honest, I’m ready. I want to just bounce back in and get one more for the year. I just want to keep moving forward and keep running it up and getting cheques. That’s what it’s about. I want to take care of my family and leave a legacy,” he said.
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is excited to see the team progress with Kenny Pickett as the starting quarterback, confirming the change ahead of their Week 5 game against the Buffalo Bills.
Pickett replaced Mitch Trubisky at half-time of Sunday's defeat to the New York Jets and, despite the loss, caught the eye with a display that included two rushing touchdowns – making him the first QB since 1970 to score multiple rushing TD's in his first game.
Tomlin was initially coy on Pickett's future following the game against the Jets but, ahead of a challenging trip to face the Bills, he confirmed that the rookie will get his chance to start.
"There are a lot of things to be excited about, there are a lot of things to have urgency with. We have no reservations of what Kenny is going to be capable of in terms of our schematics," he said in Tuesday's press conference.
"We have a level of concern about the environment we are taking him into, you have concerns about any quarterback you take into that environment against that defence and at that venue.
"Kenny has shown us maturity at every moment throughout this process. He's older than most rookies and that was obvious to us leading up to the draft process. The things we value in him from a draft perspective, he's fluid and quick, his decision-making, a pro-like anticipation and things of that nature have proven to be true.
"That's why we took him when we were given the opportunity to do so. Since we acquired him, he has done nothing but fortify that thought process and make some plays, during team development and in pre-season.
"He has continually got better even after the regular season started. We can see the progress; we can see his maturity and readiness. We're excited for him and about him, but we have work as a collective, so we prepare with an edge knowing that."
Tomlin made it clear that while Trubisky's display against the Jets in the first half was a factor in the decision, the blame does not lie solely at the feet of the number two overall draft pick in 2017, who penned a two-year deal with the Steelers in March.
"Often QB gets too much credit, too much blame. We haven't moved the ball fluid enough to our liking, we haven't put enough points on the board, the QB is a component of that but not the only one," he added.
"We've all got to absorb the responsibility and what we haven't done, including myself. When you make a QB change, you're sensitive to that component of it. I don't want to dump responsibility of what transpired at Mitch's feet, that's not fair to him.
"In an effort to be better, to score more points, to move the ball more fluidly, we decided to go to Kenny in hopes that he would provide a spark for us. Hopefully that's a catalyst for us."
Jamie George will miss England's November internationals after he was ruled out for 10 weeks with a foot injury.
The hooker will be sidelined until early in December due to damage done in Saracens' Premiership win over Leicester Tigers last Saturday.
George will play no part in the Red Rose's Tests against Argentina, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa.
Eddie Jones had already lost Leicester centre Guy Porter and Harlequins hooker Jack Walker to injury.
Courtney Lawes, Sam Underhill, Anthony Watson, Maro Itoje and Alex Dombrandt are among the other England players who are unavailable due to injury.
Carlos Alcaraz was dumped out of the Astana Open in the first round on Tuesday, suffering a surprise 7-5 6-3 defeat to David Goffin.
Goffin entered the draw as a lucky loser after squandering two match points to lose his final qualification match against Luca Nardi on Sunday, but he produced a fine display to see off the world number one in one hour and 46 minutes.
The Belgian had to rediscover his composure to take the opener after throwing away a 5-2 lead, but ultimately deserved his straight-sets win over the US Open champion.
Speaking on court after his victory, Goffin said: "I always believe that I have the level to cause some trouble against those guys.
"When you play against the world number one on a big stage, big crowd, the fire inside gives you so much power to play your best tennis because you don't have any choice."
Stefanos Tsitsipas was the only other seed in action in Kazakhstan on Tuesday, and he advanced to the round of 16 by beating home favourite Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3 6-4.
The Tokyo Open also lost its top seed, as Casper Ruud fell to a 6-3 6-3 loss to Jaume Munar, who claimed his first top-10 win since beating Alexander Zverev in 2019.
But the likes of Borna Coric and Nick Kyrgios fared better, claiming straight-sets wins over Thanasi Kokkinakis and Tseng Chun-hsin, respectively.
Wimbledon runner-up Kyrgios only dropped four further points on his serve after being forced to save a break point in his opening service game, racing to a dominant 6-3 6-1 win.
Elsewhere, eighth seed Dan Evans fought back to beat Radu Albot 6-7 (3-7) 6-1 6-4, and Alex de Minaur lost 6-3 6-2 to Kwon Soon-woo.
The NBA is back, which means excitement for most fanbases – but anxiety for others.
The new season should ensure a clean slate for everyone, but some situations have been allowed to fester in recent months without the distraction of on-court action.
Now, even with basketball returning, developments around Kevin Durant's future might prove every bit as intriguing to the neutral as anything that happens in the regular season.
And Durant and the Brooklyn Nets are not the only player-team combo in a tricky spot heading into the year...
Everyone at the Lakers
Before considering the wide-ranging implications of Durant's trade request, let's check in on last year's team in crisis.
Plenty of outsiders could have forecast difficulties for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2021-22, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis joined in a 'big three' by Russell Westbrook – at this stage in his career, consistent only in using up a huge number of possessions.
Westbrook had averaged a usage rate above 30 per cent in every season between 2014-15 and 2020-21, with his average over the seven seasons (34.6 per cent) only narrowly trailing James Harden's league-leading 34.7 per cent (minimum 500 possessions). A ball-dominant player on often mediocre teams, Westbrook's winning percentage of 59.2 ranked 109th over this period among those to play 100 or more games. Harden (66.2) was a far more respectable 29th.
Although his usage dipped to 27.5 per cent around better players in LA, Westbrook remained every bit as erratic as expected and, unfortunately for the Lakers, played more than 500 more minutes than any team-mate – comfortably ahead of an ageing James and bulkier Davis.
The three superstars started just 21 games together and even then only scraped a winning record at 11-10.
Having missed the playoffs – and even the play-in – in 11th in the West, the Lakers fired coach Frank Vogel, perhaps optimistically hoping he alone was the problem, and brought back each of James, Davis and Westbrook.
Seemingly determined to further upset a team who won the title just two years ago, the Lakers were also linked with a move for Kyrie Irving before settling instead on Patrick Beverley, who might prove only marginally less disruptive.
Westbrook and Beverley have repeatedly clashed in the past, although the new Lakers signing has described his team-mate as "someone I always wanted to play with", praising his "competitive spirit, that fire, that will, that dog, that nastiness, that grit".
New coach Darvin Ham thinks the pair can work together, but the potential for fireworks is considerable even before taking into account James' own "competitive spirit".
Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving at the Nets
The 2019 free agency moves for Durant and Irving certainly made the Nets relevant. But they haven't yet made them successful. And right now, Brooklyn might be the most explosive environment in the NBA.
Durant missed their first year together with an Achilles injury sustained playing for the Golden State Warriors, yet the Nets have still only won seven playoff games in the past three postseasons – all seven of those wins coming in a short-lived 2020-21 run.
Last season, as they had been in their first season with Durant and Irving, Brooklyn were swept in the first round. It concluded a miserable campaign that was not about to get better in the offseason.
With Irving unvaccinated and so unable to play in New York City until March, he and Durant started only 17 games together in the regular season. The Nets had started the season with their own 'big three', but Harden – much to his frustration – appeared just twice alongside the star pairing before he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. Ben Simmons came in the other direction and did not play once.
Far from a happy camp, when Irving then opted in to the final year of his contract in late June, the Nets were vulnerable to a trade request from Durant, which quickly followed.
However, with four years remaining on his own deal and Brooklyn asking for a huge price in trade talks, it was reported Durant had returned to the Nets and promised to stay if head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks were replaced.
Ultimately, Durant "agreed to move forward with our partnership" – as Marks phrased it – regardless, with Nash saying in September his relationship with the superstar was "good".
"I love the guy," added Nash, who understood Durant being "seething" at the end of the season. "Families have issues. We had a moment, and it's behind us. That's what happens."
In theory – especially if Simmons can return to his two-time All-Defensive First Team best – the Nets could have a great team in 2022-23.
Yet based on how this project has gone so far, it is not difficult to imagine a scenario in which Brooklyn endure another desperately disappointing season and are again left attempting to convince Durant to stay.
James Harden at the 76ers
The 76ers moved one miserable superstar in Simmons for another in Harden, which was only enough to take them as far as the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year.
And en route to that unsatisfactory conclusion, team-mate Joel Embiid was not shy in criticising Harden, repeatedly calling on him to be more aggressive while recognising he is no longer "the Houston James Harden".
It was an understandable complaint; Harden attempted only 13.6 field goals per game for the Sixers in the regular season – little more than half the number of shots he was taking in 2018-19 for the Houston Rockets (24.5), when he scored a career-high 36.1 points per game. He was also only making 40.2 per cent of his field goal attempts in Philly, down on every other season in his career.
So far, it is fair to say this has not worked. Doc Rivers, in a training camp clip published by the NBA, told Harden he and Embiid needed to "listen to each other" and acknowledged the partnership needed work as it was "unnatural".
Echoing some of Embiid's complaints, coach Rivers said: "You can't just say you're a facilitator. I need you to be a scorer and a facilitator."
Rivers for now believes it can still be fixed. "When it clicks, James, we're going to be unbeatable," he told a player who, for his part, agreed to a restructured contract that allowed Philly to bolster their roster in the offseason.
But this team – and certainly Embiid – might argue more help would not be required if Harden played in the manner he is capable.
"We've got to establish Joel and you – it's a pecking order," added Rivers. "This ain't a democracy."
Embiid may not believe this is "the Houston James Harden", but the team and Harden himself seemingly do, with the former Rocket announcing: "If my conditioning can be level with my skill set and my IQ and the work that I put in, it's MVP – and I feel like my conditioning is where it needs to be."
Harden needs to start showing that, or this time his team might tire of him, rather than the other way around.
Jaylen Brown at the Celtics
Little has gone to plan for the Boston Celtics since winning Game 3 of the 2022 NBA Finals, as they lost the next three to the Warriors and then saw preparations for a bounce-back season in 2022-23 rocked by a number of key absences.
Boston will begin the year without new signing Danilo Gallinari, who tore his ACL playing for Italy, Robert Williams, who has also undergone knee surgery, and, crucially, coach Ime Udoka.
Udoka had turned around his first season as a head coach spectacularly, with the Celtics tied for ninth in the East at the turn of the year after a 17-19 start before leading the conference the rest of the way (34-12) to take the second seed.
But a year-long suspension for Udoka "for violations of team policies" was announced by the team last month.
And even between the ultimately disappointing postseason and repeatedly disrupted preseason, not everything was rosy, with Boston also impacted by the Durant saga.
When Durant looked to be on the move, reports claimed the Celtics had offered the Nets a package that included Jaylen Brown. That trade did not materialise, of course, but it is difficult to imagine Brown was too impressed.
In recent seasons, Brown has been hugely valuable to the Celtics – not least because he is being paid below his value.
Brown is one of only 11 players who has scored at least 1,400 points at an average of at least 23.5 per game in each of the past two seasons. Of the other 10, four have current or future contracts with an average annual value of more than $50m, another four are being paid over $40m per year, and the final two are bringing in a salary in excess of $30m a season.
Brown's deal, which ranks outside the top 50 contracts in the NBA in both total value and average annual value, earns him $26.6m each year.
And the rules around NBA extensions will prevent Brown being paid on par with his contemporaries unless he makes All-NBA in one of the two seasons remaining on his contract.
In theory, that carrot should encourage Brown to enjoy another big season, but at a franchise as fractured as the Celtics have suddenly become, focus could understandably drift instead towards free agency in 2024.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the Thunder
Unlike the other teams on this list, the Oklahoma City Thunder do not have the pressure of needing to win now – but that is part of the problem.
OKC moved on their ageing stars, loaded up on draft picks and put together a young core that includes Chet Holmgren, Josh Giddey and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. That is all very exciting... or at least it will be.
Rookie Holmgren is down for the year, seemingly making this another season in which the Thunder will lose games and then see what they can do in the draft.
That is no great issue for 20-year-old Holmgren or 19-year-old Giddey, but it does not suit Gilgeous-Alexander, now 24 and entering his fifth year, quite so much – even if he also starts the year injured.
Among the 63 players to score 2,000 or more points across the past two seasons combined, Gilgeous-Alexander ranked 18th for points per game (24.2). He ranked 61st for wins (32).
This is not a case of an average player stat-padding on a bad team; he is simply too good to be in this situation.
And having agreed a five-year extension in August ahead of Holmgren's injury, it appeared Gilgeous-Alexander had unknowingly signed up for more of the same.
He disagrees, insisting: "I know what I signed up for when I signed a five-year extension. I don't think we're going to be losing for much longer. It's not like I signed up to lose."
But lose they will, if they have any sense – and past experience suggests they do.
Without Holmgren, the Thunder are not going to be in any position to seriously compete, which opens up the possibility to pick high in a draft that includes a potentially generational talent in Victor Wembanyama.
At some stage, OKC will be ready, but that is not now, and Gilgeous-Alexander could be forgiven for finding his patience waning.
Miami Dolphins linebacker Jaelan Phillips has described the controversy surrounding Tua Tagovailoa's concussion as "complicated" following fierce criticism of the team.
Dolphins quarterback Tagovailoa sustained a concussion in Thursday's loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, ruling him out of week five's meeting with the New York Jets.
Tagovailoa also suffered a head injury when he took a heavy fall following a challenge from Matt Milano in week three, but only missed three snaps against the Buffalo Bills despite appearing unsteady on his feet after the incident.
The Dolphins have faced scrutiny for allowing Tagovailoa to return in that game, although defensive tackle Christian Wilkins has since defended the team's practices.
Phillips joined Wilkins in preaching caution when discussing the NFL's concussion protocols, but said injury concerns were not always "black and white".
"It's always better to be overcautious when it comes to head injuries," he said.
"I also think that you've got to take the players' and training staff and doctors' words for it. So it's obviously a complicated situation.
"I think that the league and the PA [National Football League Players Association] doing everything they can to keep us safe is in the best interest, for sure."
Asked about the risks of concussion in football, Phillips added: "It's an assumed risk. It's obviously something that is prevalent in the game, not just with head injuries, but just injuries all around. I think that's kind of what we sign up for.
"Ultimately, it happens. At that point, you just pray for a speedy recovery. But I feel like that's what we signed up for playing this game.
"It's a violent game. We all know that. We wouldn't play it if we didn't know that. We're compensated well for it.
"Health is the most important thing, and longevity. So I think that especially with head injuries, you've got to be cautious with that. But at the same time, people do recover from those types of things.
"We're competitors and we love this game and we want to be out there for our team-mates, for our families, for the fans, for everybody. So it's a sliding scale.
"It's not black and white when it comes to injuries at all. Sometimes you might try to play through something. If you're able to perform, you always want to perform. I mean, that's just the nature of the game that we play.
"Ultimately, it just depends on the severity of the injury and depends on the person, the situation and all of that."
Phillips has suffered several concussions during his own career, and sympathises with Tagovailoa's condition, adding: "To be honest, that seems like a lifetime ago for me when I had those issues.
"But I definitely sympathise with Tua and just hope for the best for him. You never want to see your team-mate, your brother, hurting like that."
Sean McVay accepted he made "some bad play calls" and declared the Los Angeles Rams brought defeat upon themselves as they fell to the San Francisco 49ers.
Monday night's 24-9 loss saw the Rams fail to capitalise on several touchdown opportunities, with McVay pointing to "self-inflicted wounds".
San Francisco's Deebo Manuel caught six passes for 115 yards and a highlight-reel touchdown, and when the Rams were still in the game, at 17-9 in arrears, quarterback Matthew Stafford was intercepted by Talanoa Hufanga. That pick-six summed up the Rams' night.
"I liked the way our guys battled, they competed and got it to a one-possession game," said McVay.
"But the story of the night from an offensive perspective was self-inflicted wounds, above-the-neck errors where we're not doing things we're capable of, and I expect us to be better than that.
"Defensively, I know we continue to battle, we gave ourselves a chance. We can tackle better, you credit them for making the plays, and I thought special teams hung tough, but overall we didn't do enough to win the football game.
"I'm not going to make any excuses. We've got to play better. A lot of it was just things where guys we were counting on didn't do what they were supposed to do."
McVay took his share of the blame, saying: "I put us in some bad spots.
"However you want to cut it, we have to be better collectively, coaches and players. There's no other way around it and no way I know how to fix it other than go back to work."
The Rams will face the Dallas Cowboys, who are on a three-game winning streak, in Week 5.
"Everybody needs to be able to look inward," said McVay. "In the red area, to have three good drives and only come away with nine points in a game that was a back-and-forth battle like that, that ended up being the difference.
"And when you do make it a one-possession game and you've got some momentum, a couple of game first downs and we throw an interception for a touchdown on a screen, those are the things that don't help you win games."
Christian Wilkins is content with the level of care shown by the Miami Dolphins' staff after the team was heavily criticised following Tua Tagovailoa's head injury.
Tagovailoa has been ruled out of the Dolphins' game against the New York Jets in Week 5 after sustaining a concussion in last Thursday's loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Dolphins have come under scrutiny for allowing the quarterback to feature in that game after he suffered a head injury in week three against the Buffalo Bills.
In that game, Tagovailoa missed just three snaps after his helmet slammed into the turf following a tackle from Matt Milano, despite appearing groggy and losing his balance in the aftermath of the incident.
While Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel has insisted concussion protocols were followed correctly, the NFL and National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) conducted a joint review of how the decision was made to allow Tagovailoa to return against the Bengals.
Asked whether he felt the Dolphins demonstrated a duty of care towards their players, defensive tackle Wilkins said: "Oh, absolutely, yeah. We've got a great training staff.
"We've got great coaches, people who care about the players on this team, and our health and safety, our personal lives, all that stuff.
"This is our home away from home, so we've got a lot of people who care and it's bigger than just football around here and winning games.
"There's a process to how things need to be handled and need to be done, and there's protocols in place for a reason – to protect the players."
With Teddy Bridgewater set to replace Tagovailoa against the Jets, Wilkins said the Dolphins' "next man up mentality" will help them cope without their starting QB.
"That's obviously tough to see and tough to deal with, but we all had each other's backs. We all had Tua's back and just wishing him well," he added.
"A lot of guys were praying for him and things like that, obviously. He's better now, so we're all happy for that and that he’s feeling better and that he's himself and he's around here.
"He's being himself and Tua and bringing great energy. So that's obviously the most important thing.
"Tua is a heck of a player. He's a big part of our team and obviously a great leader and a great team-mate. But fortunately for us, we have a lot of great players, a lot of good team-mates.
"Other guys have just got to step up, other guys got to do their job, and we'll be just fine from that standpoint.
"We're definitely going to have to come together as a team and just do our jobs, do what we do. It's the next man up mentality and we'll just handle our business."
Deebo Samuel described his tackle-breaking abilities as "second nature" after his outstanding 57-yard catch-and-run touchdown helped the San Francisco 49ers beat the Los Angeles Rams.
Samuel provided the standout moment of an accomplished 49ers performance on Monday, as they prevented the Rams from scoring a single touchdown in a dominant 24-9 home win.
Jimmy Garoppolo looked destined to throw an interception late in the second quarter, only for Samuel to turn a fine catch into a touchdown as he skipped past several Rams challenges.
The wide receiver caught six passes for 115 yards as the 49ers moved to 2-2 for the season.
"My mentality, it's just me and the ball out there. What happened after that is something that I work on all the time and I got in the box," Samuel said.
"Every time I get the chance to get the ball in my hands, it's just my mentality of trying to make it a big play, but it's just second nature to me right now.
"When I go out there it's just me and the ball. Breaking tackles is just something I do all the time."
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said of Samuel's run: "It was impressive.
"At first it looked like a pick. It was close, that corner was teeing off on it.
"We had to wait a little bit because the guy inside, they ran into each other. We had to hesitate just a hair for Deebo to come down with that throw, then he did the rest.
"When you get the ball in his hands, I think he's shown he does some pretty cool things."
Nick Kyrgios' lawyers will apply for the tennis star's assault charge to be dismissed on mental health grounds, an Australian court was told on Tuesday.
Kyrgios was charged in July of this year in relation to the alleged assault of a former partner in January 2021.
The 27-year-old, who has enjoyed a fine season in 2022, reaching the final of Wimbledon and the last eight at the US Open, was not present for a hearing in Canberra on Tuesday, as he features in the Japan Open.
Michael Kukulies-Smith, who is representing Kyrgios, asked for the case to be adjourned so forensic mental health reports could be prepared.
The case was duly adjourned to February 3, 2023 by magistrate Glenn Theakston. It is then expected Kyrgios' legal representatives will apply to have the case dismissed, with Kukulies-Smith stating he was making the application having reviewed Kyrgios' "medical history since 2015, including public disclosures of his mental health struggles".
Australian law dictates that magistrates have the power to dismiss a charge if they believe an accused person is mentally impaired, and that dealing with a charge in such a manner would be of benefit to both the defendant and the community.
Kyrgios could face two years in prison should he be handed a maximum sentence.
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