Joel Embiid's shove of a member of the media will cost the Philadelphia 76ers centre three games.

The NBA announced the three-game suspension on Tuesday for Embiid's confrontation with a newspaper columnist.

The ban will begin in the next game he is physically able to play. The 2022-23 league MVP has yet to play this season due to what the team is calling left knee management.

The altercation that led to the suspension occurred Saturday night in the locker room of Philadelphia's home arena after the 76ers' 124-107 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Embiid was angry with a piece written by Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes in which he questioned Embiid's professionalism and mentioned the seven-time All-Star's late brother and son.

Embiid shoved Hayes and threatened him while spewing profanity.

"Mutual respect is paramount to the relationship between players and media in the NBA," NBA executive Joe Dumars said in a statement announcing the suspension. "While we understand Joel was offended by the personal nature of the original version of the reporter’s column, interactions must remain professional on both sides and can never turn physical."

Without Embiid, the 76ers have started just 1-5.

There was some hope that Embiid would be able to make his debut Wednesday against the Clippers, but now the earliest he would be eligible to play would be next Tuesday against the New York Knicks.

A handful of teams made moves ahead of Tuesday's NFL trade deadline in an attempt to bolster their play-offs hopes.

Three first-place teams - the Washington Commanders, Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers - all swung deals, and we'll find out in just over three months if any of these trades help those franchises capture a Super Bowl championship.

The Commanders acquired perhaps the biggest name on the trade market, picking up cornerback Marshon Lattimore from the scuffling New Orleans Saints.

The Commanders shipped a third-, fourth- and sixth-round pick to the Saints for the four-time Pro Bowler, as well as a fifth-round draft pick.

The 28-year-old Lattimore was named 2017 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year, and though he has been slowed by injuries to his hamstring and abdomen the past few seasons, he is still considered one of the best shutdown defensive backs in the league, having not allowed a touchdown to be scored on him in coverage since 2021.

He has 15 interceptions in his eight pro seasons, but doesn't have one in seven games this year.

Lattimore goes from a New Orleans team that is in the midst of a seven-game losing streak and had just fired coach Dennis Allen on Monday to a Washington team that is 7-2 and is surprisingly atop the NFC East.

Lions add pass rusher Smith in trade with Browns

The Lions opened the final day of trading by acquiring pass rusher Za'Darius Smith from the Cleveland Browns for a fifth-round pick and a sixth-rounder in 2026. The Lions are also receiving a seventh-round pick in 2026 from the Browns.

Detroit (7-1) had been looking to upgrade its pass rush after star defensive end Aidan Hutchinson fractured his left tibia and fibula back in Week 6, and Smith should help in that department.

A three-time Pro Bowl selection, the 32-year-old Smith has five sacks this year and 65 sacks in 132 games over 10 pro seasons.

The Lions are in first place in the NFC North with a 7-1 record, but have struggled to generate pressure without Hutchinson, recording just five sacks in the three games without him after registering 15 in its first five games.

Jets send wide receiver Williams to Steelers

The New York Jets found a suitor for Mike Williams, shipping the wide receiver to the Steelers for a fifth-round pick in the 2025 draft.

Williams, a two-time 1,000-yard receiver, was in his first season with the Jets (3-6) after spending his first seven NFL seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers.

He was never able to build any chemistry with Aaron Rodgers, however, and the 40-year-old quarterback called out Williams for running the wrong route on a play that Rodgers threw an interception late in a 23-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 6.

At that point, it was clear New York was going to try to find a trade partner for the embattled wide out, especially after the Jets acquired Rodgers' old friend Davante Adams in a trade with the Las Vegas Raiders (2-7) last month.

Williams, who has 321 career receptions for 4,972 yards and 31 touchdowns, now joins a Steelers team that has won three straight games and is atop the AFC North with a 6-2 record.

Pittsburgh also acquired veteran pass rusher Preston Smith from the Green Bay Packers for a seventh-round draft pick.

Rams trade cornerback White to Ravens

The Los Angeles Rams dealt cornerback TreDavious White to the Baltimore Ravens (6-3) in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round draft pick and a seventh-rounder the following year.

The Rams (4-4)  had given White permission to seek a trade in late October, and has been inactive in their last four games.

The disgruntled cornerback was in his first season in Los Angeles after spending his first seven seasons with the Buffalo Bills.

The 29-year-old is a two-time Pro Bowl selection, but has been limited to 14 games in the last three seasons due to various injuries.

He should still be able to help a Baltimore defense that is last in the NFL against the pass, allowing an average of 280.9 passing yards per game.

In moves on a smaller scale, the Cowboys (3-5) acquired wide receiver Jonathan Mingo from the Carolina Panthers (2-7), and the Cincinnati Bengals (4-5) picked up Khalil Herbert from the Chicago Bears (4-4) for depth at running back.

One player who didn't change teams and was rumoured to be on the move was the Raiders star edge rusher Maxx Crosby.

The Seattle Seahawks (4-5) also decided to keep wide receiver DK Metcalf , while the Panthers are sticking with No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young and the Indianapolis Colts (4-5) are keeping quarterback Anthony Richardson.

Iga Swiatek's hopes of finishing as the year-end world number one were dashed after she fell to defeat against Coco Gauff at the WTA Finals on Tuesday. 

Gauff earned her first triumph over Swiatek since the 2023 Cincinnati Open, emerging a 6-3 6-4 victor to reach the final four of the competition in Riyadh. 

It means Aryna Sabalenka is now guaranteed to top the WTA rankings at the end of a calendar year for the first time in her career. 

World number three Gauff finished the encounter with 10 winners to 33 unforced errors, 11 of which were double faults. Swiatek outpaced Gauff with 15 winners, but struck 47 unforced errors.

At the age of 20 years and 237 days old, Gauff is the youngest American to reach back-to-back semi-finals at the WTA Finals since Tracy Austin (1979 and 1980).

She is also the first player under the age of 21 to win both her first two round-robin matches at the year-end competition since Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sharapova in 2007.

"It feels great and despite our head-to-head I was still confident and I knew if I could find my game, I knew I had the chance to close out the match," Gauff told Sky Sports Tennis.

"I was just trying to be resilient and play it deep. The conditions are tough and the altitude is tough.

"I was trying not to give her too many unforced errors. It's just a game of cat and mouse in these conditions."

In Tuesday's other match, Barbora Krejcikova ended Jessica Pegula's hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals of the tournament with a straight-sets triumph. 

The Wimbledon champion needed just 69 minutes to secure a 6-3 6-3 victory, serving 11 aces throughout the contest compared to Pegula's one. 

World number 13 Krejcikova became the lowest-ranked player to win a match at the WTA Finals since Magdalena Maleeva (ranked 17th) defeated Daniela Hantuchova in 2002.

The Czech will also have confidence of claiming the crown in Riyadh having won her previous events in Tallinn, Ostrava, Dubai and Wimbledon when beating an opponent in the WTA's top 10. 

"I was fighting for every ball and I felt that I really have to play my best tennis," said Krejcikova, who picked up just her 20th match win of the season. 

"I was trying to be really solid and trying to put as many balls to the other side as I could. 

"I’m definitely proud. I had some very high parts of the season, especially winning Wimbledon. That’s something indescribable.

"And being here in the Finals is a huge privilege. It’s nice to get the win and still be part of the event."

Steve Borthwick has named an unchanged starting team for England's match against Australia on Saturday with two changes on the bench.

England enter their second November Test looking to bounce back from their narrow 24-22 defeat to New Zealand last weekend. 

Borthwick, however has elected to name the same group that started against the All Blacks, though Henry Slade will shift to inside centre, while Ollie Lawrence moves to outside centre.

Marcus Smith retains his place at fly-half while Jamie George continues to lead the side at hooker, but there is no place for Theo Dan or Ben Curry. 

The pair are replaced by Luke Cowan-Dickie and Ollie Sleightholme as England move from a six-two split between forwards and backs to a five-three combination.

Hooker Cowan-Dickie will make his first England appearance since November 2022 if he is introduced off the bench.

“Facing Australia is always a massive challenge, and we’ll work diligently this week to ensure we’re physically and tactically prepared to take on the Wallabies,” said Borthwick.

“The passion and energy from the crowd at Allianz Stadium last weekend was absolutely brilliant, from the opening whistle to the final moments, and we can't wait to be back at home this Saturday."

England squad in full:

George Furbank, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Ollie Lawrence, Henry Slade, Tommy Freeman, Marcus Smith, Ben Spencer; Ellis Genge, Jamie George (captain), Will Stuart, Maro Itoje, George Martin, Chandler Cunningham-South, Tom Curry, Ben Earl.

Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Fin Baxter, Dan Cole, Nick Isiekwe, Alex Dombrandt, Harry Randall, George Ford, Ollie Sleightholme

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones implied that quarterback Dak Prescott will likely be placed on injured reserve, meaning he would miss a minimum of four games.

The Cowboys announced Monday that Prescott would be side-lined with an injured hamstring, but a decision on if he would go on IR had not yet been made.

Speaking on his weekly radio appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Tuesday, Jones indicated the injury was worse than initially feared.

"It's likely we'll IR him," Jones said. "We'll see how his rehab goes."

Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter of Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.

The Cowboys ended up losing their third straight game to drop to 3-5, which matches the total number of losses the team had each of the last three seasons.

They now sit in third place in the NFC East, 3 1/2 games behind the division-leading Washington Commanders.

Rush has found some success as a fill-in starter for the Cowboys, though, the 30-year-old hasn't been forced into the starting role since 2022.

In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.

Patrick Mahomes assured the ankle injury he sustained during the Kansas City Chiefs’ victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is “not too bad” despite hailing the incident as “scary”.

The quarterback led the Chiefs to their 14th straight win with 34 of his 44 passes completed for 291 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.

The Bucs took them to overtime but the AFC West leaders prevailed to remain unbeaten following a 30-24 victory on Monday.

Mahomes had hobbled off with assistance at one point during the game, leading to concern ahead of the Chiefs' next game against the Denver Broncos, but he has provided some reassurance.

"[The injury was] definitely scary. I think it hurt more just because it's the same ankle I rolled last week, so it scared me a little bit,” he said.

“But once I took my breath and calmed down a little bit, it ended up being not too bad. We were able to go in there at the reset and go back on the football team."

It means it is likely Mahomes will return next week despite the reoccurrence of the injury on the same ankle, with head coach Andy Reid marvelling at the 29-year-old's resilience.

"I wasn't sure exactly where he was going to be with it. He might have the loosest ankles in America. It's ridiculous how he can come back from those things,” he said.

The victory also marked DeAndre Hopkins’ first home game as a Chief, as he finished with eight catches for 86 yards and two touchdowns.

"[Hopkins] is so good at winning one-on-one, so to be able to have him down in the red zone, third-down situations - he does a good job of filling out and finding those windows. You give him a chance down the field and he makes a play,” Mahomes said.

Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the ATP Finals, which start in Turin later this week.

Djokovic pulled out of the Paris Masters last month, and the world number five will now not feature in the season-ending tournament.

The 37-year-old, who lost to Jannik Sinner in the Shanghai Masters in his last competitive appearance, is sat on 99 ATP Tour-level titles, and his wait for a 100th victory will now roll into 2025.

Djokovic confirmed on Tuesday that he would not be participating in the ATP Finals.

"I was really looking forward to being there, but due to ongoing injury I won't be playing next week," Djokovic said on social media.

"Apologies to those who were planning to see me. Wishing all the players a great tournament. See you soon!"

Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev and Taylor Fritz have all qualified for the tournament.

Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud and Alex de Minaur are the three players contesting for the remaining two spots.

Anthony Davis is unsure as to the extent of a foot injury he aggravated against the Detroit Pistons, but he knows the Los Angeles Lakers must find some consistency.

Davis scored 37 points on Monday but his efforts were not enough to prevent Los Angeles slipping to a 115-103 loss.

The Lakers are now 4-3 overall after winning their opening three games of the season.

To compound their frustration, Davis – who is averaging 32.6 points per game – aggravated a left foot issue in the final quarter.

"We're just two different teams right now," lamented Davis.

"One game, we're this team who showcased it can be one of the better teams in the league. Then the next, we're this team who -- I don't even know who we are. So, we just got to be better.

"We got to put a full 48 [minutes] together, and we can't continue to do this if we expect to do anything this season."

On his injury, Davis added: "I'll talk to my trainer and just kind of figure out what exactly is going on.

"I've been managing it since this summer, honestly, and my goal for every game is to be on the floor. And I just kind of landed directly on the spot that's been killing me. So, we'll figure it out."

LeBron James finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds, and was honest in his assessment of a potential lay-off for Davis.

"I don't play the 'if' game," James said.

"We'll go off what AD says and see how he feels over the next couple of days and go from there. But it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know [the impact] if AD's in or out. C'mon."

Reflecting on the latest defeat, Lakers coach JJ Redick simply said: "We're all disappointed."

Darius Garland capped a 39-point night by hitting a go-ahead 3-pointer with 45 seconds left that enabled the scorching Cleveland Cavaliers to stay unbeaten with Monday's 116-114 win over the reeling Milwaukee Bucks.

After converting a layup that brought the Cavaliers within 111-110 with 1:07 remaining, Garland knocked down a 25-footer on Cleveland's next possession after the Bucks' Damian Lillard was called for a backcourt violation.

Lillard then misfired on a 3-point try on Milwaukee's next trip down the court before Jarrett Allen sealed the Cavs' eighth straight win to begin the season with a layup off a Garland feed with 12.2 seconds to go.

Cleveland matched the best start in a season in franchise history, having previously gone 8-0 to open the 1976-77 campaign.

Garland finished 7 of 11 from 3-point range and 15 of 22 overall from the field while adding eight assists. The Cavaliers also received 14 points, 15 rebounds and six assists from Allen and 17 points from Evan Mobley.

Milwaukee, meanwhile, has lost six in a row since a season-opening win at Philadelphia for its longest skid in a season since also dropping six straight in March 2015. The Bucks also played without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a strained adductor muscle he sustained in a 114-113 loss to Cleveland on Saturday.

Lillard paced the Bucks with 36 points on 11-of-22 shooting to go along with seven assists. Bobby Portis and AJ Green each had 21 points for Milwaukee, with Portis adding 18 rebounds.

Thunder cruise past Magic to move to 7-0

The Oklahoma City Thunder also stayed perfect for the young season by coasting to a 102-86 victory over the Orlando Magic behind Jalen Williams' 23 points and 21 from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The Western Conference's lone remaining unbeaten team led from start to finish and built a margin as large as 26 points in the second half to extend its best start since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. The Seattle Supersonics began a season 7-0 or better three times, most recently a 10-game run to open the 1993-94 campaign.

Orlando shot just 35.4 per cent from the field to lose its fourth straight game following a 3-1 start. The last three defeats have come with leading scorer Paolo Banchero sidelined with a torn oblique.

Franz Wagner led the Magic with 22 points, while Jalen Suggs recorded 19 points, six rebounds and six assists.

Williams put up 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting as the Thunder shot a torrid 71.4 per cent in the first quarter to take a 39-26 lead into the second. The forward ended the first half with 19 points to lead Oklahoma City into the break owning a comfortable 58-43 advantage.

The Thunder continued to add to their lead in the third quarter, as three consecutive 3-pointers from reserve Isaiah Joe highlighted a 13-1 run that extended the margin to 84-58 late in the period.

Durant's late basket lifts Suns, foils 76ers in George's debut

Kevin Durant's driving layup with 24 seconds remaining broke a tie game and put a damper on Paul George's delayed debut with the Philadelphia 76ers as the Phoenix Suns came through with a 118-116 win.

Durant's key basket capped a 10-1 run over the final 3 1/2 minutes that lifted Phoenix to its fifth straight victory following a 1-1 start. The star forward finished with 35 points and six assists to help offset an off night from team-mate Devin Booker, who went 3 of 18 from the field while scoring 13 points.

George had 15 points in 32 minutes in his first appearance since signing with the 76ers as a free agent in the offseason. The nine-time All-Star missed the team's first five games due to a bone bruise in his left knee and was rusty during his return, missing 10 of his 14 shot attempts.

Philadelphia, which remains without franchise centre Joel Embiid due to a knee issue, dropped to 1-5 despite Tyrese Maxey's 32 points on 12-of-22 shooting.

The 76ers appeared on the way to a win after owning a 115-108 advantage following Guerschon Yabusele's dunk with 3:39 to go, which turned out to be their final basket of the night.

Phoenix answered with eight straight points, capped by Durant's jumper with one minute to play, to take a 116-115 edge.

After Maxey made one of two free throws to tie the game with 49.6 seconds left, Durant drove past a defender and scored before George misfired on a 23-footer just before the final buzzer. 

Kareem Hunt finished the game's lone overtime drive with a 2-yard touchdown run that kept the Kansas City Chiefs unbeaten with Monday's 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Hunt powered into the end zone to conclude the 10-play, 70-yard series that gave Kansas City (8-0) its 14th consecutive victory, including play-off games, dating back to last season. The veteran running back finished the night with a season-high 106 rushing yards on 27 carries. 

Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, including two to DeAndre Hopkins in the wide receiver's first home game as a Chief, to help the defending Super Bowl champions stay perfect despite the Buccaneers forcing overtime on Baker Mayfield's 1-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Miller with 27 seconds left in regulation.

Tampa Bay (4-5) opted to kick the extra point instead of attempting a potential game-winning two-point conversion, however, and never got the ball back again after losing the coin toss to begin overtime.

The Bucs trailed 10-7 at half-time following Mahomes' 1-yard touchdown pass to Hopkins late in the second quarter, but scored 10 unanswered points in the third quarter to move ahead.

After Mayfield found Cade Otton for an 11-yard touchdown pass early in the period for a 14-10 lead, Tampa Bay's defence forced a three-and-out to help set up Chase McLaughlin's 47-yard field goal with 5:50 left in the third.

The Chiefs stormed back with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, however. Mahomes capped a 12-play, 70-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown delivery to Samaje Perine to tie the game at 17-17, then later hit Hopkins for a go-ahead 5-yard strike with 4:17 remaining in regulation.

Kansas City's next possession stalled, though, to give Mayfield enough time to orchestrate a 10-play, 71-yard sequence that ended in Miller's tying touchdown grab.

Mayfield finished 23 of 31 with 200 yards and two touchdowns. Otton led the Bucs with 77 receiving yards on eight catches, while Rachaad White had a rushing touchdown for Tampa in the first half.

The Chiefs received 14 catches for 100 yards from Travis Kelce and 86 yards on eight receptions from Hopkins, playing his second game since being acquired by Kansas CIty from the Tennessee Titans on Oct. 24.