25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson
13. C.J. Gardner-Johnson
12. Dallas Goedert
11. Josh Sweat
10. Bryce Huff
9. Cam Jurgens
8. Saquon Barkley
7. Darius Slay
6. DeVonta Smith
5. Jalen Carter
4. Jordan Mailata
3. A.J. Brown

The City of Philadelphia was starving for a star receiver and A.J. Brown has been even better than anyone could have hoped.

In the two years since Howie Roseman’s draft day trade with the Titans, Brown has been nothing short of a superstar with the Eagles. And that’s why it was no shocker when the Eagles signed him to another extension, this one through the 2029 season, this offseason.

Brown isn’t just good. He isn’t just great. He’s already an all-timer.

We are witnessing a potential Hall of Fame receiver in the prime of his career.

In his two seasons with the Eagles, Brown has already had the top two receiving seasons in Eagles history. He broke Mike Quick’s 38-year-old single season record (1,409) in 2022 and then he did it again in 2023:

2022: 88 catches, 1,496 yards, 11 touchdowns

2023: 106 catches, 1,456 yards, 7 touchdowns

Since joining the Eagles in 2022, Brown is third in the NFL in receiving yards and sixth in receiving touchdowns. Here’s a look at the top five in receiving:

1. Tyreek Hill: 3,509
2. CeeDee Lamb: 3,108
3. A.J. Brown: 2,952
4. Justin Jefferson: 2,883
5. Amon-Ra St. Brown: 2,676

Brown’s production was a little uneven in 2023 but he had one of the most incredible stretches we’ve ever seen from an NFL wide receiver when he recorded six straight games with 125+ yards, surpassing a record held by Calvin Johnson (2012) and Pat Studstill (1966). He was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for October.

In the last two years, Brown became the first Eagles player to have back-to-back 1,200 yard seasons and he went over 1,400 yards in each of them.

It seems hard to fathom that Brown could still get better but he has seemed especially driven this offseason after the Eagles’ season collapsed in 2023.

“Not every loss is a loss. I don’t even like to say a loss is a loss,” Brown said. “It’s always a lesson. It’s always something to learn from. I feel like you better learn something from it or it’s going to return. I’m always going to have that mentality to put in the work, grind and put my best foot forward and attack each and every day moving forward. 

“I can’t worry about the past, I can’t worry about yesterday. I’m here right now and that’s all I have. Today, practice, that’s all I’m granted with and that’s what I got to do and give it my all today.”

The Eagles have all the makings of an elite offense in 2024. They have Brown, DeVonta Smith, Saquon Barkley, Dallas Goedert, Jalen Hurts and an offensive line that is still very good despite the retirement of Jason Kelce.

On top of it all, the Eagles brought in a new offensive coordinator in Kellen Moore this offseason in an attempt to maximize all that talent. We saw some growing pains in the spring but there’s no doubt this unit has the chance to be special.

All those other skill players are important but none are more important than Brown. They need to him to remain elite.

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25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson
13. C.J. Gardner-Johnson
12. Dallas Goedert
11. Josh Sweat
10. Bryce Huff
9. Cam Jurgens
8. Saquon Barkley
7. Darius Slay
6. DeVonta Smith
5. Jalen Carter
4. Jordan Mailata

Less than a decade ago, Jordan Mailata didn’t even really know what American football was. And now he’s one of the top five most important players on a Super Bowl contender.

That’s made-for-a-movie type stuff.

But there’s no question that Mailata is one of the best tackles in the NFL and he’s still just 27 years old and has 57 starts under his belt. Last season, Mailata started all 17 games for the Eagles and was the only player to play all 1,147 offensive snaps.

In their ranking of the top offensive tackles in the NFL going into 2024, ProFootballFocus ranked Mailata at No. 5 behind just Trent Williams, Tristan Wirfs, Penei Sewell and Christian Darrisaw:

“Philadelphia’s left tackle got off to a terrific start in 2023, as he was PFF’s second-highest graded offensive tackle after eight weeks. And at that point, he was the only player at the position with run-blocking and pass-blocking grades of at least 84.0. While he was unable to continue that form for the entire season, he still finished the campaign with an 84.8 overall grade that ranked third at the position.”

In 2024, Mailata gave up 46 total pressure but just 3 sacks and was the Eagles’ highest-graded pass blocker and their second-highest-graded run blocker, according to PFF. While the Pro Bowl and All-Pro accolades haven’t yet followed, Mailata took a jump last season into the top tier of NFL offensive tackles.

The Eagles saw it too. And this offseason, they signed Mailata to a three-year extension worth $66 million that will keep him under contract through the 2028 season. Based on APY ($22M), Mailata is the fourth-highest paid left tackle in the NFL behind Laremy Tunsil, Andrew Thomas and Trent Williams.

While the Eagles lost Jason Kelce to retirement this offseason, they should still have a strong offensive line anchored by Mailata and Lane Johnson at the two tackle positions.

This summer, on a delayed honeymoon in Italy, Mailata finally took some time to reflect on his journey over the last 7 years. He said he thought it was important to recognize how far he’s come.

As much as Jeff Stoutland and the rest of the Eagles coaches and players have helped Mailata achieve his success, no one deserves more credit than him. Mailata left Australia to follow his dream and now he’s one of the best tackles in football.

“Part of it is the way I was raised by my parents and my siblings,” Mailata said. “I recognize the opportunity that I have every day when I step foot into this building. It’s an incredibly humbling one because I came from humble beginnings. When you recognize the opportunity that you have, you want to take full advantage of it. But you also have to remember where you come from.”

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25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson
13. C.J. Gardner-Johnson
12. Dallas Goedert
11. Josh Sweat
10. Bryce Huff
9. Cam Jurgens
8. Saquon Barkley
7. Darius Slay
6. DeVonta Smith
5. Jalen Carter

Through the first half of last season, Jalen Carter wasn’t just one of the best rookie defensive tackles in the NFL; he was one of the best defensive tackles, period.

While his play certainly tailed off, along with the rest of the defense, there was no denying the All-Pro level we saw from Carter early in his rookie season. The No. 9 overall pick showed why he was considered by many to be the best overall player in last year’s draft class. 

His lackluster second half cost Carter the Defensive Rookie of the Year title (Houston’s Will Anderson took it) but the future appears extremely bright for the young defensive stud. If he can find consistency, there’s a very good chance Carter could become a Pro Bowler or even an All-Pro in Year 2.

After the retirement of Fletcher Cox this offseason, the Eagles are counting on Carter making that jump.

And Carter, 23, has been really focusing on one thing as he gets ready for the 2024 season.

“It’s been a lot on conditioning,” Carter said at OTAs. “Really, I’d like to be more conditioned than working on technique because we got all year for technique stuff. We work on technique everyday in practice with our hands, working on pass rushes and stuff like that.

“But you really don’t work on conditioning a lot. But I did more conditioning than I did hand movement and some of the stuff like that.”

It’s probably wise for Carter to focus on conditioning because the Eagles are going to need him to eat way more snaps in 2024. As a rookie, Carter played 563 snaps (48%), which ranked second among the Eagles’ defensive tackles behind just Cox’s 684 (59%). But with Cox gone, Carter will probably see a big increase.

And there’s a chance Vic Fangio doesn’t use a rotation as much as we’re used to around here. In Miami last season, top interior lineman Christian Wilkins played 894 snaps (81%).

In addition to a new defensive coordinator, Carter also has a new D-line coach in Clint Hurtt. Hurtt got to know Carter in the pre-draft process when Hurtt was the DC with the Seahawks. He confirmed that Seattle’s No. 5 pick came down to Carter or Devon Witherspoon, who ended up being the selection.

But because of that interest, Hurtt had a relationship with Carter before taking the job with the Eagles.

“He’s maturing, coming along,” Hurtt said of Carter.I’ve been really pleased with the development so far through the offseason program.”

Hurtt clearly sees the potential in Carter and so does the rest of the league.

In their rankings of the top defensive tackles going into the 2024 season, ProFootballFocus listed Carter at No. 9:

“For the first half of his rookie season, Carter looked like he might rival the best defensive tackles in the game right out of the gate.

“Through Week 8, Carter boasted a 91.6 PFF overall grade to trail only Dexter Lawrence. His second half of the season was less consistent, but he was still a wrecking machine when at his best.

“Overall, Carter finished with 50 quarterback pressures and an 84.6 PFF pass-rushing grade. If he takes a step forward in his second year, the rest of the league needs to look out.”

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25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson
13. C.J. Gardner-Johnson
12. Dallas Goedert
11. Josh Sweat
10. Bryce Huff
9. Cam Jurgens
8. Saquon Barkley
7. Darius Slay
6. DeVonta Smith

There was hand-wringing from some Eagles fans about whether or not the Birds were going to be able to sign DeVonta Smith to a contract extension this offseason.

There was no reason to worry.

The Eagles were never going to let a young, homegrown star receiver leave the building. They had plenty of money and foresight this offseason to extend both Smith and A.J. Brown.

Since Smith was a first-round pick in the 2021 draft class, this offseason was the first time he was eligible for an extension and the Eagles wasted little time locking him up on a three-year, $75 million deal. Since then, some other receivers have surpassed that but Smith was and is happy with his deal.

For years, the Eagles had subpar receivers so it’s a real luxury to have two receivers as good as Brown and Smith. While Brown is the superstar of the two, Smith is a star in his own right with over 3,000 yards receiving in his first three seasons.

And there’s not a hint of jealousy between them.

“I think at the end of the day, any problem that would happen is (if there were) jealousy between one of them,” Sirianni said. “But these guys love each other. These two guys have a great relationship. And that’s what you’re trying to create for your entire football team. And it’s a great example. I feel like I’m able to use them a lot as far as the example of how teammates respond to each other.

“DeVonta is genuinely happy when A.J. has a good game and A.J. is genuinely happy when DeVonta has a good game and they help each other get better throughout the week.”

While Smith’s numbers haven’t been as gaudy as Brown’s, he’d be a No. 1 receiver on a ton of other teams and his numbers would be way better if Brown wasn’t here. But that’s what makes the Eagles’ passing attack so dynamic: Both of them.

Brown and Smith were the first Eagles duo of receivers ever to have 1,000+ yards in a single season and they’ve now done it in back-to-back seasons.

With 3,178 receiving yards, Smith is just the second Eagles player all-time to have 3,000+ yards in his first three NFL seasons, joining DeSean Jackson, who had 3,124 from 2008 to 2010. No Eagles player has ever had more receptions (240) than Smith in their first three seasons.

And there’s a chance the Eagles have just scratched the surface with the former Heisman Trophy winner. The Eagles have a new offensive coordinator in Kellen Moore, who might be able to unlock even more of Smith’s skills.

“I think it’s going to be great,” Smith said at mandatory minicamp. “Get a new style of offense around. Let guys, not have more freedom, but be able to do things that we weren’t allowed to do, moving guys around, things like that. Overall, it’s always (good) to have a fresh start.”

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Even though the Eagles didn’t exactly break the bank to sign Devin White this offseason, his somewhat significant deal still lets us know that he’s one starter.

But there’s another spot open next to him.

Last year, the Eagles got by for most of the season with Zach Cunningham and Nicholas Morrow but it looks like they’ll have two new starters in 2024. One will be White. As for the others …

Here are the candidates: 

Zack Baun
Age: 27
Experience: Year 5
Size: 6-3, 225

After spending the first four years of his career with the Saints, Baun signed with the Eagles as a free agent in March. One of the biggest surprises of OTAs was seeing Baun get a bunch of reps at off-ball linebacker with the first-team defense. Because when the Eagles signed Baun, it appeared like he was joining the team as a situational pass rusher, something that he clearly enjoyed doing a big last year with the Saints. But Vic Fangio mentioned Baun’s name with the off-ball linebackers and the Eagles think he can play there too. If nothing else, it made sense to see Baun in that role in a glorified passing camp to find out how he’d handle coverage responsibilities. He didn’t look out of place.

Nakobe Dean
Age: 23
Experience: Year 3
Size: 5-11, 231

The Eagles went into the 2023 season with the expectation of making Dean their starting middle linebacker. After a redshirt season as a third-round pick in 2022, both starters left in free agency and the Eagles were ready to hand over the keys to Dean. But he got hurt early in the year and ended up playing just five games before landing on IR for good. He had surgery and was just returning to the field as a full participant during the spring. Most of his reps in OTAs and minicamp came with the second team but he should get a fair shot at winning a starting gig. The front office has to be pulling for him.

Oren Burks
Age: 29
Experience: Year 7
Size: 6-3, 233

Burks came to the Eagles as a free agent after spending two years behind Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw in San Francisco. Because of Greenlaw’s injury in the Super Bowl, Burks ended up playing a lot in that loss. Before his time with the 49ers, Burks played four seasons with the Packers, who drafted him in the third round back in 2018. In his career, Burks has played in 91 games with 15 starts, including a career-high 5 in 2023.

Ben VanSumeren
Age: 24
Experience: Year 2
Size: 6-2, 231

After starting his rookie season on the practice squad, VanSumeren gave special teams a boost and was promoted to the active roster. He played in nine games last season and even made one start, but he played a total of just 50 defensive snaps. His biggest contributions were as a core special teamer. 

Jeremiah Trotter Jr.
Age: 21
Experience: Rookie
Size: 6-0, 225

There’s no doubt that the Eagles’ drafting the young Axe Man was a really cool moment. But Trotter Jr. has a bit of an uphill battle in this competition given his lack of experience. But Trotter was known for his instincts at Clemson and it will be fun to see those on display when the pads come on this summer.

Outlook

The top two players who seem to be fighting for this job are Baun and Dean. You’d expect that Dean will have every opportunity to win this job just a few years after he was a celebrated third-round pick. But this is one that really well need to be won in training camp.

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25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson
13. C.J. Gardner-Johnson
12. Dallas Goedert
11. Josh Sweat
10. Bryce Huff
9. Cam Jurgens

Cam Jurgens knew from the moment the Eagles drafted that it would be his job to eventually replace Jason Kelce and now that day is finally here.

Kelce retired this offseason after a Hall of Fame career and Jurgens will take over for him as the Eagles’ center. 

Big shoes to fill.

“At the end of the day, just be myself,” Jurgens said this spring. “I’m not trying to be somebody’s replacement or somebody’s next person. I’m just trying to be myself. I’m trying to be the best football player I can be and whatever position they put me that’s what I’m going to do.

“I’m not worried about anything else but what I can control and I think that’s all I got to worry about at the end of the day. I think when you start putting it into those perspectives and terms and people like to compare, you just put different things on your shoulders that you need to carry. And, really, what can I do today? What can I do to learn? What can I do to get better and how can I be the best football player I can be? And not how can I be what he was? What are we going to do tomorrow? That’s how I gotta look at it.”

Since Kelce had flirted so openly about retirement in recent years, his decision to walk away from the game after the 2023 season wasn’t much of a shock. Heck, the reason the Eagles used a second-round pick on Jurgens in the 2022 draft was to find Kelce’s replacement and the Eagles even sought out Kelce’s opinion on prospects. Kelce, by the way, gave Jurgens’ tape a ringing endorsement.

In 2022, Jurgens basically had a redshirt season as the No. 51 overall pick out of Nebraska, learning behind Kelce as the Eagles’ backup center. But when the right guard job became available in 2023, the Eagles moved him to that spot. And even though Jurgens’ more natural position is clearly center, he held his own at right guard.

“Cam Jurgens was brought here two years ago for the reason of when Kelce does retire that we have a guy that we really identified as being a top-level center, in our opinion,” Eagles longtime OL coach Jeff Stoutland said this spring. “When you look at those things, many of you guys have heard me talk about critical factors. Each position has a list of these factors. And for me, that’s everything. I’m not deviating from that. I’ve done this 40-something years now. All the good players I’ve ever coached have the same things. And I’m like, why don’t you just build a list of these factors and then go by that in terms of how you’re evaluating players. 

“Cam just so happened to check a lot of the boxes of foot and body quickness, he’s powerful, has got great core strength, he’s got the ability to communicate to the corps. When we moved him to guard, and a lot of you guys asked me about this last year, I wasn’t sure if he would be able to. Because we weren’t evaluating him for that spot. I was real impressed with the job that he did there, to be honest with you. His physicality and all that. So it’s perfect timing for him.”

But it wouldn’t be fair to really take too much from his 11 starts at right guard in 2023 because the Eagles didn’t draft Jurgens to play guard. They drafted him to play center. And from an athletic standpoint, Jurgens has an awful lot in common with Kelce.

Jurgens is athletic and smart but he just doesn’t have over a decade in the NFL. The nuances of the game that Kelce learned and weaponized really made him stand out during the latter portion of his career.

The good news is that Jurgens did get some time on the field with Kelce last season. And Stoutland thinks that’s going to help.

“I know one of you wants to ask, ‘Hey, how did that help him, playing next to Kelce?’ That’s the question!” Stoutland exclaimed. “How great that was for him to actually be on the field, playing in games and hearing what Kelce’s saying, how he’s saying it, to be right there next to him? I think that was tremendous help.”

And if Jurgens has any questions, Kelce is still around. He’s been at the NovaCare Complex plenty since retirement and is always willing to offer advice or answer questions.

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This year, we’ll start off with the third wide receiver position.

The Eagles have one of the best pairs of starting receivers in the NFL with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. They have each had 1,000+ yards in back-to-back seasons and both got big extensions this offseason.

But after those two? That’s a bit of a problem. Last year, the Eagles rotated three players at the WR3 position: Quez Watkins, Olamide Zaccheaus and Julio Jones. None of them ever really took ownership of that job and now all three are gone.

Not only will the third receiver play quite a bit this season but if either of the starters has to miss some time, the third guy would become a starter in their place. So while it might seem like a rich man problem, the WR3 position is pretty important.

Here are the candidates:

Parris Campbell
Age: 26
Experience: Year 6
Size: 6-1, 205

The Colts took Campbell in the second round of the 2019 draft at No. 59, just a couple picks after the Eagles selected J.J. Arcega-Whiteside. The Eagles’ pick came down to those two, who have both had disappointing careers. Campbell’s career has been plagued by injuries, although he has had a much better NFL career than JJAW. Campbell’s best NFL season came in 2022, when he caught 63 passes for 623 yards and 3 touchdowns. That kind of production sounds intriguing but in his other four years combined, Campbell has just 54 catches for 464 yards and 2 touchdowns. And last year with the Giants, a team that needed help on offense, Campbell had just 20/104/0 and ended up as a healthy scratch late in the season. During spring practices, Campbell was the top guy of this bunch and he looked good. But given his injury history, if he ends up in this position, there will be some skepticism that he’ll stay healthy.

John Ross
Age: 28
Experience: Year 6
Size: 5-11, 190

The former first-round pick hasn’t played in an NFL game since 2021 but after officially retiring last year, Ross decided to attempt a comeback. He joined the Eagles on a tryout at rookie camp and ended up earning a roster spot. Ross is many years removed from running a 4.22 at the 2017 NFL Combine but he still has speed. During the spring, he said he feels like these days he’s figured out how to be more consistent with his speed. The problem is that it’s just never really shown up on the field. Ross, who was taken at No. 9 overall by the Bengals, has under 1,000 receiving yards in his entire career. His best season came in 2019 when he caught 28 passes for 506 yards and 3 touchdowns. In his last NFL season with the Giants, Ross had 11/224/1.

Britain Covey
Age: 27
Experience: Year 3
Size: 5-8, 173

The Eagles signed Covey as a UDFA out of Utah back in 2022 and he’s spent the last two seasons as the Eagles’ primary punt returner. He has 62 returns over the last two years with an overall average of 11.7 and averaged 14.4 in 2023. But he hasn’t played much on offense. He has played a total of 77 offensive snaps and has just 4 catches for 42 yards. Because of his size, Covey is a slot-only option.

Ainias Smith
Age: 23
Experience: Rookie
Size: 5-9, 176

The rookie fifth-round pick from Texas A&M missed the beginning of the spring with a stress fracture in his shin and looked a little rusty upon his return. Like Covey, Smith’s size makes you think he’s a slot-only option. In college, Smith showed some ability out of the slot and has some quick twitch to his game. His best season came in 2023, when he caught 53 passes for 795 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Johnny Wilson
Age: 23
Experience: Rookie
Size: 6-6, 228

The rookie sixth-round pick from Florida State is intriguing because of his unique size and wingspan. He even made a nice grab over Isaiah Rodgers during spring practices. In his two seasons at FSU, Wilson caught 84 passes for 1,514 yards and 7 touchdowns. But because of his size, Wilson doesn’t appear to be much of an option inside.

Joseph Ngata
Age: 23
Experience: Year 1
Size: 6-3, 217

The Eagles liked Ngata enough last year to sign him as a UDFA and keep him on their practice squad all of last season. And in the spring, Ngata got some first-team reps when the top two were missing. At Clemson, his best season came in 2022 with 41/526/2. The Eagles have a bunch of big-bodied guys on futures deals but Ngata is probably ahead of most of them.

Outlook

Of the guys on the roster, the favorite to win this gig is clearly Campbell. But given his career arc and injury history, that’s a little concerning. The Eagles signed DeVante Parker this offseason but then he decided to retire. Had Parker stuck around, there’s a very good chance he’d be in that spot. This is a position where the Eagles could continue to look for additions.

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25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson

Is there anything more Landon Dickerson becoming the highest-paid guard in NFL history and just wanting to get a new lawnmower?

Probably not.

But that exactly what Dickerson did after signing a four-year, $84 million contract extension this offseason.

Dickerson’s extension, worth a record $21 million per season, will keep him under contract with the Eagles through the 2028 season. He’s one of several veterans to be extended this offseason.

The Eagles drafted Dickerson in the second round back in 2021 and he was set to enter the final year of his contract in 2024. The Eagles got ahead of it when they signed Dickerson to this extension in early March. Not only is it the Eagles’ style to get these deals done early, but Dickerson has been exactly what the Eagles were hoping he’d be when they took a risk in the second round in 2021.

This offseason was the first time Dickerson was eligible for a contract extension and the Eagles didn’t hesitate to give him that big deal.

In his three seasons in the NFL, Dickerson has started 46 games and has found a home at left guard next to his best friend Jordan Mailata, who is also under contract through 2028 after an extension of his own this offseason.

Dickerson, 25, has been the full-time starter at left guard the last two seasons and has been named a Pro Bowler in each of those seasons. While Dickerson is notoriously hard on himself, the Pro Bowl voters see the player he’s been. And by paying him top-of-the-market money, the Eagles see the player they think Dickerson can become.

Because even though he’s been a Pro Bowler, Dickerson still isn’t the best guard in the NFL, although the list of players above him gets shorter every season.

And the Eagles have been pretty good at forecasting with Dickerson. The only reason he was available where they took him at No. 37 out of Alabama in 2021 is because of his laundry list of injuries in college.

Dickerson was completely healthy for just one of his five college seasons at Florida State and Alabama:

2016: Played 7 games. Season-ending ACL injury (right knee) at FSU
2017: Played 4 games. Season-ending ankle injury (right ankle) at FSU
2018: Played 2 games. Had severe ankle sprain (left ankle) at FSU
2019: Played and started 13 games at Alabama
2020: Played 12 games. Tore ACL in SEC Championship Game (left knee) at Alabama

At the time, the pick was a bit of a gamble. It brought up the memory of drafting cornerback Sidney Jones, who fell into the second round back in 2017.

But the Eagles trusted their medical staff and ended up nailing it. While he’s had a few bumps and bruises along the way the last few years, Dickerson has avoided major injury.

“I think for us, you want to take some chances,” Eagles GM Howie Roseman said after drafting Dickerson in 2021. “You want to be aggressive on talent at times but you also have to weigh that with other factors, and I think when you talk about Sidney (Jones), he wants to be a really good player. Unfortunately when you look at what happened this training camp, we didn’t have a much — as much opportunity to evaluate him as we would have liked to.”

In 2023, Dickerson ranked as ProFootballFocus’s 17th overall guard. He gave up 5 sacks but just a total of 38 pressures in 17 games.

There will be even more on Dickerson’s plate in 2024 after the retirement of Jason Kelce. The Eagles are obviously going to miss Kelce and because of Cam Jurgens’ move inside, they’re going to have a new right guard too. That puts more pressure on Dickerson to solidify the middle of the Eagles’ offensive line.

Based on his first three years in the NFL, he’ll be up for that challenge.

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Two popular teams expected to make the knockout rounds didn’t even advance past the group stage. Both the U.S. men’s national team and Mexico finished third in their respective groups, which wasn’t enough to progress.

But there’s still a decent amount of quality teams remaining. Lionel Messi and Argentina are still going strong while Brazil advanced but finished second in its group amid some disappointing play.

Here’s what to know about the 2024 Copa America knockout stages:

What is the Copa America 2024 knockout stage bracket?

The Copa America does not have a round of 16 because it has fewer teams competing in the tournament, so it goes straight to the quarterfinals. Here’s the bracket:

QUARTERFINALS

• Argentina vs. Ecuador
• Venezuela vs. Canada
• Panama vs. Colombia
• Uruguay vs. Brazil

SEMIFINALS

• Argentina/Ecuador vs. Venezuela/Canada
• Panama/Colombia vs. Uruguay/Brazil

FINAL

• Argentina/Ecuador/Venezuela/Canada vs. Panama/Colombia vs. Uruguay/Brazil

What is the Copa America 2024 knockout round schedule?

Here’s the full schedule up until the final:

QUARTERFINALS

• Argentina vs. Ecuador: Thursday, July 4 at 9 p.m. ET, 6 p.m. PT
• Venezuela vs. Canada: Friday, July 5 at 9 p.m. ET, 6 p.m. PT
• Panama vs. Colombia: Saturday, July 6 at 6 p.m. ET, 3 p.m. PT
• Uruguay vs. Brazil: Sunday, July 7 at 9 p.m. ET, 6 p.m. PT

SEMIFINALS

• Argentina/Ecuador vs. Venezuela/Canada: Tuesday, July 9 at 8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. PT
• Panama/Colombia vs. Uruguay/Brazil: Wednesday, July 10 at 8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. PT

FINAL

• Argentina/Ecuador/Venezuela/Canada vs. Panama/Colombia vs. Uruguay/Brazil: Sunday, July 14 at 8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. PT

How to watch the Copa America 2024 knockout stage games

Copa America knockout games will be broadcast in English on FOX, while Univision and TUDN will carry matches in Spanish.

Where is the Copa America 2024 tournament?

The Copa America is being held in the United States. The final will be played at Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins.

Coach Javier Mascherano included four World Cup winners in the squad he announced Tuesday, including striker Julián Álvarez and defender Nicolás Otamendi.

The 37-year-old Messi, who has struggled with injuries this year, is now playing at the Copa America, aiming to defend the continental title he won in 2021. That victory served as a springboard for Argentina to lift the World Cup in 2022.

Messi won the gold medal at Beijing in 2008 in his only Olympic campaign.

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The Olympic men’s soccer tournament is for under-23 teams, but three older players are allowed on each squad.

Mascherano, who won the Olympic gold medal as a player in 2004 and ’08, will add goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli, Otamendi and Álvarez to his squad after Copa America is finished.

Midfielder Claudio Echeverri, a recent signing for Manchester City from River Plate, will also join.

Argentina will play two friendlies in France before its Olympic soccer tournament opener against Morocco on July 24. Argentina and Morocco are in Group B along with Iraq and Ukraine.

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Twelve players were selected to the team on Tuesday as they will take on the U.S. women’s national team in the All-Star Game on July 20.

The U.S. team is the same squad that will compete for gold at the Paris Olympics shortly after the All-Star Game, so it will be a star-studded battle.

Here’s what to know about the 2024 squad:

Who are the 2024 WNBA All-Stars?

Here’s the full list, with Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark among the selections:

• Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever
• DeWanna Bonner, Connecticut Sun
• Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever
• Allisha Gray, Atlanta Dream
• Dearica Hamby, Los Angeles Sparks
• Brionna Jones, Connecticut Sun
• Jonquel Jones, New York Liberty
• Kayla McBride, Minnesota Lynx
• Kelsey Mitchell, Indiana Fever
• Arike Ogunbowale, Dallas Wings
• Nneka Ogwumike, Seattle Storm
• Angel Reese, Chicago Sky

Who will the WNBA All-Stars play in 2024?

The 2024 All-Stars will take on the Team USA women’s squad headed to Paris. Here’s the list:

• A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces
• Kelsey Plum, Las Vegas Aces
• Sabrina Ionescu, New York Liberty
• Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx
• Chelsea Gray, Las Vegas Aces
• Kahleah Copper, Phoenix Mercury
• Brittney Griner, Phoenix Mercury
• Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm
• Breanna Stewart, New York Liberty
• Diana Taurasi, Phoenix Mercury
• Alyssa Thomas, Connecticut Sun
• Jackie Young, Las Vegas Aces

When is the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game?

The game is set for Saturday, July 20.

What time is the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game?

Tip-off time is set for 8:30 p.m. ET.

How to watch the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game

The game will be broadcast on ABC.

The Brazilian government’s official publication said Tuesday that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva had passed a law sanctioning the national tribute to the three-time World Cup winner. The Brazilian soccer great died on Dec. 29, 2022, at the age of 82.

The date picked for the festivities is a reference to the day Pelé scored Santos’ winner from the penalty spot in a 2-1 win against Vasco da Gama at the Maracana Stadium in 1969 — although some soccer historians question whether that actually was the 1,000th goal of his career.

Pelé used the celebrations for that goal to make a rare somewhat political speech, in which he told reporters on the pitch that Brazil should take better care of its children. The South American nation was then under a military dictatorship that started in 1964 and only ended in 1985.

“This is an acknowledgment that is more than deserved for one of the most important and influential people not only in Brazilian soccer, but in world sports,” said Sen. Jorge Kajuru, a former sports reporter and one of the sponsors of the bill in Congress.

Last week, Pelé’s mother Celeste Arantes died at the age of 101.

The U.S. on Monday were eliminated in the Copa America group stage after falling to Uruguay 1-0 in a must-win game.

It marked an inexcusable exit considering the U.S. were also grouped with Panama and Bolivia. At the minimum, the U.S. should’ve advanced into the knockout rounds in second place.

Instead, the U.S. became a laughingstock in the middle of its most important cycle with the 2026 World Cup two years away. Manager Gregg Berhalter’s job came into question once again as he has yet to prove he can lift the USMNT into conversations with some of the world’s best nations, even after his controversial re-hire in June of 2023.

Though the USMNT doesn’t have a managerial job opening at the moment, who should be considered for the role if Berhalter is no longer in charge? These five candidates may fit the bill:

Jurgen Klopp, free agent

There’s no doubt that Klopp is the best free agent on the market. After just leaving Liverpool in the English Premier League, the multi-time domestic league winner and Champions League winner is rumored to be taking a break while only a handful of projects may entice him considering what he’s already achieved.

Why the U.S. would be intriguing is because he hasn’t managed a national team yet. A German native, the Germany national team is managed by rising youngster Julian Nagelsmann, so that role may not be open anytime soon.

Klopp is known for his ability to develop players into stars, give youngsters a deserving chance and, on occasion, make teams punch above their weight. His 4-3-3 heavy-pressing style may also suit the profiles on the USMNT, along with translating well in international football.

It’d be a dream hire and a longshot, though it’s a conversation the U.S. has got to attempt.

Wilfried Nancy, Columbus Crew

If the U.S. wants to tap into the rising star market, there’s an option right at home in MLS.

A Frenchman with over a decade of MLS coaching experience, Nancy most recently led the Columbus Crew to a cup title in 2023. The Crew also reached the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup Final, but lost to Pachuca on the road.

Nancy, 47, is known for his fluid three center-back formation with two wingbacks holding the width and two defensive midfielders in front of the defenders (3-4-2-1 variations) that MLS teams had trouble countering. That specific style may not fit the USMNT’s players or international football, but Nancy could be a name worth calling even if there are some risks.

Hugo Perez, free agent

If it’s the former USMNT player route that becomes the choice, then Perez could be a name to watch.

Perez played for 14 years — including in the U.S. — from 1982 to 1996. He had 73 caps for the USMNT and scored 13 goals as a midfielder from 1984 to 1994 before being inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2008.

He worked as a coach for the U.S. U14s and 15s from 2012 to 2014, but left due to unconfirmed reasons. Since 2015, he’s been with the El Salvador national team — where he was born — in different capacities and most recently served as the senior team’s head coach from 2021 to 2023 before being let go.

There’d be risks with Perez because of his coaching resume, but he represented the U.S. at the 1984 Olympics, 1991 Gold Cup (which the U.S. won) and the 1994 World Cup, so he’s been involved in the biggest tournaments from a player perspective.

Sergio Conceicao, free agent

Conceicao just left Portugal’s FC Porto after a seven-year stint where he won three league titles, among other domestic trophies. From his 17-year playing career to 14-year coaching career, there’s not much Conceicao hasn’t won or seen.

He also had 56 caps for the Portuguese national team and played as a forward, though he’s yet to coach a national team.

Conceicao’s teams have a blend of high technical prowess and grit defensively, which have deeply troubled some of Europe’s elites in the Champions League.

He most recently used variations of a 4-2-3-1 with Porto, which is a formation that would work well with the current U.S. setup. He may not be a household name for most fans, but the quality is certainly there.

Pep Guardiola, Manchester City

Well, why not? Guardiola has hinted at leaving Manchester City at the end of the 2024-25 Premier League season, with the club’s 115 charges case against the league set to heat up later in the year.

Guardiola is regarded as one if, if not the, best manager of all time due to his talent identification, formations, playstyles and adjustments, not to mention how much he’s won as both a player and coach with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and more.

His 4-3-3 style would definitely fit the U.S., but there would be concerns if the players have enough quality to perform what he demands. His possession-based, low-risk style also isn’t the best for international football, but he’s a name the U.S. also should at least try for as he spends more time in the country.

The field has shifted this year as Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, the reigning champion of the contest, will not participate in Thursday’s event after signing a deal with a rival brand.

Instead, Chestnut will take his hot dog-downing talents to an army base in Texas for America’s Independence Day. Chestnut, of Indiana, will compete against soldiers in Fort Bliss, in El Paso, in a 5-minute hot dog eating contest. In 2021, Chestnut set the current record of 76 hot dogs, in 10 minutes.

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With Chestnut out, those vying for second place in Brooklyn in the past might have renewed hope to chomp their way to victory this year.

Last year’s second-place winner was Geoffrey Esper from Oxford, Massachusetts, who downed 49 dogs to Chestnut’s 62. Third place went to Australia’s James Webb with 47.

Miki Sudo, of Tampa, Florida, holds the women’s record of 48.5 in 10 minutes. Miki won her ninth title at the Nathan’s Famous contest last year with 39.5 hot dogs and buns eaten.

Contestants hail from 13 states and several countries.

HOW TO WATCH

If you can’t make it to Coney Island, ESPN will be airing and streaming the competition. Coverage of the women’s competition begins at 10:45 a.m. ET on ESPN3. The men’s competition airs at 12 p.m. ET on ESPN2, with re-airs at 5 p.m. ET and 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

LIST OF PLAYERS BASED IN U.S.

Here are the names for contestants based in the U.S. (there are additional contestants based in other countries).

Men:

• Nicholas Wehry
• Gideon Oji
• Patrick Bertoletti
• Geoffrey Esper
• Derek “Heavy D” Hendrickson
• George Chiger
• Sean Yeager
• William Claude Lyon IV

Women:

• Michelle “Cardboard Shell” Lesco
• Tandra Childress
• Crystal “Crystal Pistol” Ocampo
• Elizabeth “Glizzy Lizzy” Salgado
• Miki Sudo
• Ellen Straub
• Julie Goldberg
• Cherish Brown
• Larell Marie Mele
• Jocelyn Young
• Rubianne Garcia
• Katie Prettyman

States included in the list above are:

• Arizona
• California
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Massachusetts
• Nevada
• New York
• Ohio
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• Texas
• Washington

With the advent of color TV and growing interest in tennis in the late 1960s, producers looked for ways to improve the viewing experience. Tennis balls were historically either black or white.

Attenborough, who worked for the BBC in the ’60s when the broadcaster was transitioning to color, was one of the people who inspired the switch to yellow balls, the All England Club said Tuesday.

The 98-year-old Attenborough was a guest in the Royal Box at Centre Court on Monday when play started at the grass-court Grand Slam. England soccer great David Beckham was alongside him.

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The International Tennis Federation introduced yellow balls into the rules of the sport in 1972 “as research had shown these balls to be more visible to television viewers.”

Ironically, Wimbledon didn’t make the switch until 1986. The official Wimbledon Compendium for that year noted: “Yellow balls were used for the first time, largely as the white balls were getting stained green on the grass, sometimes making them almost impossible to see on TV, where tennis was increasingly popular.”

However, not every country is as lucky. There is still a plethora of nations that have yet to receive a single medal at any Olympic Games.

Here’s a look at the most and least decorated countries in Olympic history:

Which country has the most Olympic medals?

When it comes to overall Olympic success, it’s the United States and then everyone else.

The U.S. has won a total of 3,105 medals in all the years of competition, according to Olympedia.org. The U.S. holds a number of records when it comes to the Olympics, including the most gold, silver and bronze medals won. Following the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, Team USA now owns 1,229 gold medals, 1,000 silver and 876 bronze. 

Germany sits in second with 1,211 total medals (384 golds), while the Soviet Union is third with 1,204 total (473 gold).

France (1,039) and Great Britain (1,036) round out the top five in the all-time medal standings.

Which countries have the fewest Olympic medals?

While there are plenty of countries that have never won a medal — and we’ll get to that in a bit — there are also many that have a very small number of medals. In some cases, it’s a singular medal to the country’s name. 

Iraq and Sudan are among the countries that have just one medal. Iraq took home bronze in weightlifting at the 1960 Rome Olympics, while Sudan’s Ismail Ahmed Ismail won silver in the men’s 800m race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. 

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Tanzania, Mozambique, Afghanistan and Niger are among the countries with just two medals apiece. For Tanzania, the 1980 Moscow Games was the one and only time it medaled at the Olympics. Suleiman Nyambui won silver in the men’s 5000m competition and his countryman, Filbert Bayi, also won silver in the 3000m race. Maria de Lurdes Mutola is the only athlete from Mozambique to win medals. Competing in the women’s 800m, she won bronze at the 1996 Atlanta Games and then gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. 

Afghanistan’s Rohullah Nikpai has brought his country its only two medals, receiving a taekwondo bronze medal in both 2008 and 2012. Niger’s two medals have come from Issaka Daborg, who won a bronze medal in boxing at the 1972 Munich Games, and Abdoul Razak Issoufou, who won silver in taekwondo at the 2016 Rio Games.

Which countries have never won a medal at the Olympics?

There are more 60 countries that have participated but never won an Olympic medal. And there are even more that have medaled but never took home a gold.

Bangladesh is the most-populated country that has yet to win a medal. The country has competed in 10 Summer Games and failed to reach the podium each time. Congo, which has appeared in 13 Summer Games, is the second-highest populated country to not medal yet.

With 21 Summer and 10 Winter appearances, Monaco’s 32 total Olympics without a single medal are the most of any country. Andorra, which has competed in 25 Games (12 Summer, 13 Winter), has the next-longest streak among medal-less countries.

Which country has won the most Olympic medals at a single Games?

The U.S. claimed a record 239 total medals at the third Olympic Games, held back in 1904 in St. Louis. The 1904 Olympics was the first Games held outside of Europe and the first time the three-medal format was used.

The USSR has the second-highest total of medals won at a single Games with 195 at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. It’s hard not to include an asterisk for these Olympics, as 66 countries, including the United States, boycotted the Games that year given the political turmoil stemming from the USSR. It was the first time the Olympics had been held in a communist country until the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. 

The United Kingdom picked up 145 medals, good for third-most, at the fourth Olympics, the 1908 London Games.

Which country has won the most Olympic gold medals at a single Games?

Not surprisingly, the U.S. has the record for most gold medals won at a single Olympics. The record was set in Los Angeles in 1984 when the U.S. took home 83 gold medals, which included Carl Lewis matching Jesse Owens’ record with four gold medals and Valerie Brisco-Hooks winning three golds. 

The USSR has the second-most gold medals at a single Games, taking 80 at the controversial 1980 Moscow Olympics. The third-most also goes to the U.S., which won 73 gold medals at the 1904 Olympics.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article was published in February 2022.

Breaking, which originated in the 1970s in the streets of Bronx, New York, has 30 million fans. The sport is largely popular due to its accessibility and the fact that no equipment is required to partake — besides a pair of shoes and a speaker to play music, of course.

Don’t get it twisted, however, breakdancing is still no easy feat. Athletes have to combine rhythmic movements at fast speeds that are also accurate.

Between breaking’s top rock (stand-up dancing), the footwork (legs move while hands are on the floor) or the freeze (dancers stop in sync with the music), this is a discipline you won’t want to miss. 

Here’s how you can see the new sport live:

Where will breaking be held at the 2024 Olympics?

Place de la Concorde will be the site for breaking at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

The venue will be transformed into an open-air stadium and situated only a few steps away from the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.

When will breaking be held at the 2024 Olympics?

The two breaking events will take place on Aug. 9 and 10. The events include 16 B-Girls (women’s) and 16 B-Boys (men’s).

The competition begins at 10 a.m. ET for preliminary battles, and the action continues for the finals at 2 p.m. ET on both days.

The schedule is as follows:

What channel is breaking on at the 2024 Olympics?

Breaking will be featured on NBC on Aug. 9-10 at 8 p.m. ET.

How can I watch 2024 Olympics coverage without cable?

The Paris Olympics can also be streamed on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports app, which is available on Google’s Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store.

Which Americans are in breaking at the 2024 Olympics?

A maximum of two spots per gender per country can represent the breaking team in Paris. Here are the Americans headed to the Olympics:

Men
Victor Montalvo (Victor)
Jeffrey Louis (Jeffro)

Women
Sunny Choi (Sunny)
Logan Edra (Logistx)

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Why was breaking added to the 2024 Olympics?

When breaking made its Olympic debut at the Youth Olympic Games in 2018 Buenos Aires, the sport was a success. Because of its popularity, Paris decided to feature the new sport.

What other new sports will be at the 2024 Olympics?

Other new disciplines for the Summer Games include surfing, skateboarding and sport climbing. These three sports debuted at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Between record-setting prize money at the tournament and it being the last Grand Slam before the 2024 Paris Olympics, stakes are higher than ever.

Tournament favorites such as Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Carlos Alcaraz return to action as players who have led the men’s field for the majority of 2024.

On the women’s side, American fans can set their sights on Coco Gauff as she looks to capture her first Wimbledon title. World No. 1 Iga Swiatek remains a heavy favorite for the tournament, especially after a shocking withdrawal from No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka due to injury.

With tennis action underway in London, here is everything you need to know to catch the action at Wimbledon.

When is 2024 Wimbledon?

Wimbledon began on Monday, July 1, and runs through Sunday, July 14.

Where is 2024 Wimbledon?

The prestigious tournament is held on the grass courts of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London.

How to watch 2024 Wimbledon

You can catch the action of Wimbledon on ESPN and ESPN2. Tennis Channel will feature nightly coverage of the tournament at 5 p.m. ET, while ABC will air select weekend matches.

The matches can be streamed on ESPN+.

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What is the 2024 Wimbledon schedule?

The full broadcast schedule is as follows (all times ET):

Monday, July 1: First round 6 a.m.-5 p.m. (ESPN)

Tuesday, July 2: First round 6 a.m.-5 p.m. (ESPN)

Wednesday, July 3: Second round 6 a.m.-5 p.m. (ESPN)

Thursday, July 4: Second round 6 a.m.-5 p.m. (ESPN)

Friday, July 5: Third round 6 a.m.-5 p.m. (ESPN)

Saturday, July 6: Third round 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (ESPN) and 1 p.m.-4 p.m. (ABC)

Sunday, July 7: Round of 16 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (ESPN) and 1 p.m.-4 p.m. (ABC)

Monday, July 8: Round of 16 6 a.m.-4 p.m. (ESPN2) and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. (ESPN)

Tuesday, July 9: Quarterfinals 8 a.m.-3 p.m. (ESPN) and 8 a.m.-3 p.m. (ESPN2)

Wednesday, July 10: Quarterfinals 8 a.m.-3 p.m. (ESPN) and 8 a.m.-3 p.m. (ESPN2)

Thursday, July 11: Women’s semifinals 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (ESPN), mixed doubles final 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Friday, July 12: Men’s semifinals 8 a.m.-2 p.m. (ESPN)

Saturday, July 13: Women’s final 9 a.m.-11:30 am (ESPN), men’s doubles final 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. (ESPN), women’s final (replay) 3 p.m.- 6 p.m. (ABC)

Sunday, July 14: Men’s final 9 a.m.-12 p.m. (ESPN), women’s doubles final 12 p.m.-3 p.m. (ESPN), men’s final (replay) 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (ABC)

What are the 2024 Wimbledon draws?

The full men’s singles draw can be seen here.

The full women’s singles draw can be found here.

The new jersey, hat, and merchandise collection takes inspiration from the ubiquitous Bethlehem Star. The letter style is also meant to be a nod to Bethlehem Steel logo.

Back in 2023, the IronPigs started their City Connect Series to honor each of the primary cities that make up the Lehigh Valley which include Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton.

Last year, the team paid homage to the local Allentown department store, Hess’s and its famous strawberry pie with a logo of the delicious dessert and jersey that featured the classic Hess’s print from their branding.

Next, in 2025 Easton will be honored.

The IronPigs will wear the new Bethlehem jerseys and caps on Friday, July 19 when they take on the Worcester Red Sox at Coca-Cola Park at 7:05pm.

Tickets for that game are available at milb.com/lehigh-valley.

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Jayson Tatum is the latest superstar to cash in. Fresh off his first NBA championship, the All-NBA forward inked a record-setting, supermax contract extension with the Boston Celtics that includes $314 million over five years starting with the 2025-26 season.

Tatum is now the owner of the NBA’s most lucrative contract, taking the title from Celtics teammate Jaylen Brown, who signed a record-breaking contract in the 2023 offseason before going on to earn NBA Finals MVP honors.

Still, Tatum and Brown will not be the highest-paid players in 2024-25 as they attempt to defend their NBA title, and other rising superstars like Luka Doncic and Shai-Gilgeous Alexander are expected to surpass their total contract values as soon as next summer.

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For now, here are the NBA’s highest-paid players based on 2024-25 salary, 2025-26 salary, annual value and total contract value, as of July 2, 2024. Annual value and total contract value take into account the contracts the players are playing under for the 2024-25 season, so Tatum, Donovan Mitchell, Bam Adebayo and others who signed extensions this offseason are not featured as they continue to finish out their previous deals.

NBA’s highest-paid players: 2024-25 season

1. Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors: $55,761,216
T-2. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers: $51,415,938
T-2. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets: $51,415,938
4. Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns: $50,203,930
5. Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns: $49,856,021
T-6. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns: $49,205,800
T-6. Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics: $49,205,800
T-6. Karl-Anthony-Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves: $49,205,800
T-6. Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers: $49,205,800
T-6. Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers: $49,205,800

NBA’s highest-paid players: 2025-26 season

1. Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors: $59,606,817
T-2. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers: $55,224,526
T-2. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets: $55,224,526
4. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics: $54,126,450
T-5. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers: $54,126,380
T-5. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks: $54,126,380
T-5. Damian Lillard, Milwaukee Bucks: $54,126,380
8. Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns: $53,666,270
9. Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns: $53,282,608
T-10. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns: $53,142,264
T-10. Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics: $53,142,264
T-10. Karl-Anthony-Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves: $53,142,264

NBA’s highest-paid players: Annual value

1. Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics: $57,078,728
2. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets: $55,224,526
T-3. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns: $55,110,496
T-3. Karl-Anthony-Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves: $55,110,496
5. Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors: $53,838,416
6. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers: $53,320,232
7. Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers: $52,896,235
8. Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns: $50,203,930
9. Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers: $49,835,267
T-10. Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves: $48,924,624
T-10. Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers: $48,924,624

NBA’s highest-paid players: Total contract value

1. Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics: $285,393,640
2. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets: $276,122,630
3. Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns: $251,019,650
T-4. Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves: $244,623,120
T-4. Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers: $244,623,120
6. Giannis Antetokounmpo: $228,200,420
T-7. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns: $220,441,984
T-7. Karl-Anthony-Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves: $220,441,984
9. Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors: $215,353,664
T-10. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks: $215,159,700
T-10. Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks: $215,159,700
T-10. Zach LaVine, Chicago Bulls: $215,159,700

You have to pay extra close attention to the cars around you. Puddles can create hydroplaning situations. Windshield wipers can be distracting.

Now imagine doing that at high speed with tight corners in a competitive race against 30-plus other skilled drivers.

That’s what NASCAR stars have to do if weather hits during a race at certain tracks. The series has wet-weather tires and windshields available at certain tracks: road courses and venues one mile or shorter.

How often has the Cup Series actually raced in the rain? Ahead of the NASCAR Chicago Street Race – where weather hit in 2023 – here’s a look at all the stormy races in Cup history:

Road America, 1956

The first ever NASCAR race impacted by rain was nearly 70 years ago. Lightning delayed the start by almost 40 minutes, but cars drove onto the wet track and completed the 63-lap event in adverse conditions. Rain continued to fall during the race, reportedly leaving as much as two inches of water over portions of the track.

Future NASCAR Hall of Famer Tim Flock won the race for his 39th and final career victory. Road America, a 4.1-mile road course in Wisconsin that opened a year prior in 1955, did not host the Cup Series again until 2021.

Charlotte ROVAL, 2020

After decades of avoiding racing in the rain at all costs, NASCAR finally gave in when it added wet-weather tires for road courses (the 1956 race was run with normal slick tires). The rubber debuted at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course in October 2020, when the Bank of America ROVAL 400 began in the rain.

Drivers navigated tricky conditions in the opening stage with a wet track, although there wasn’t much precipitation. The track dried out for the remainder of the race and teams switched back to their slick tires, but this was a historic moment for the series.

Circuit of the Americas, 2021

Chase Elliott followed up his ROVAL win with another rainy victory at COTA the next year. This race was shortened by 14 laps and called due to heavy storms, but the entire 54-lap event was filled with bad weather.

There were several accidents where drivers crashed due to poor visibility before the race was ultimately called off.

Watkins Glen, 2022

For the third straight year, rain impacted a different road course event. This time it was in Watkins Glen, New York, where the race was delayed almost two hours due to heavy rain.

Once cars got on track, they used wet-weather tires as the track slowly dried throughout Stage 1. The rain stayed away for the rest of the afternoon as Kyle Larson passed Elliott on the final restart to score the win.

North Wilkesboro, 2023

NASCAR never used rain tires on an oval track … until 2023. For the All-Star Race at the historic North Wilkesboro Speedway, qualifying races were run under wet-weather conditions. The first heat race was run with wet-weather tires and the second was mixed conditions.

While there were no points on the line, this exhibition event showed NASCAR leadership that racing in the rain on oval tracks was possible. Drivers adapted just fine and the tires held up well, which opened the door for future oval rain races.

Chicago Street Race, 2023

The first ever street race in NASCAR history was, of course, impacted by rain. The start of the Grant Part 220 was delayed by over an hour before cars finally got moving. In the opening laps, there were several incidents where cars slipped and crashed as they got used to the street course and rain tires.

Slowly but surely, the “track” began to dry as the laps wound down. Shane van Gisbergen, making his first ever NASCAR start, navigated the changing conditions to perfection and won in his debut. The race was shortened by 22 laps due to darkness.

Richmond, 2024

This season, Richmond Raceway became the first oval track to use wet-weather tires for a points-paying race. The start of the Toyota Owners 400 was slightly delayed, but drivers raced on the damp track in the opening stage before it dried.

Drivers responded well to the wet track in Virginia, with no accidents over the opening 30 laps before switching over to slick tires. As of June 2024, this remains the only points-paying oval track to race with wet-weather tires.

New Hampshire, 2024

Just a few weeks ago, NASCAR once again raced in wet conditions. The first 219 laps at New Hampshire Motor Speedway were completed without a problem, but rain began to fall and the race was temporarily stopped with 82 laps to go.

Drivers, crews and fans waited over two hours for conditions to improve – and eventually cars got back on track in the wet-weather tires. The track surface was still damp for the remainder of the race, but drivers navigated through the full scheduled distance in what turned out to be the longest wet-weather stint in oval track history for NASCAR. Christopher Bell won the race after leading the final 64 laps.

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The All-Star guard agreed to a three-year, $150.3 million maximum extension with the Cleveland Cavaliers, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Tuesday.

Mitchell was under contract for the 2024-25 season at $35.4 million and had a $37 million player option for the 2025-26 season. With his new extension, Mitchell will have a player option in 2027-28, according to Wojnarowski, and is locked in for four years at $185 million.

There had been speculation about Mitchell’s future in Cleveland beyond 2025, but Wojnarowski reported that Mitchell was sold on helping turn the Cavaliers into a championship contender.

The Cavaliers acquired Mitchell in a blockbuster trade with the Jazz in 2022, sending Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, three first-round picks and two pick swaps to Utah.

Mitchell has led the team to back-to-back playoff appearances, snapping a playoff drought that dated back to 2017-18, LeBron James’ last season with the team. Cleveland reached the second round of the 2024 playoffs, but they were ousted by the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics in a gentleman’s sweep as Mitchell missed the final two games of the series due to a calf strain.

The 27-year-old guard made his fifth straight All-Star appearance in 2023-24, averaging career-highs of 6.1 assists and 1.8 steals to go along with 26.6 points per game across 55 regular season contests.

Looking ahead, Mitchell has a chance to reach the NBA’s 10-year service criteria and pursue a potential five-year, $380-plus million extension in 2027.

25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis

Jordan Davis is an NFL player. So even though the No. 13 pick from the 2022 draft hasn’t lived up to expectations, he’s far from a bust.

But the Eagles want more from him — and the 2024 season will let us know if they’re actually going to get it.

Davis, 24, got off to a really hot start last season and then collapsed in the second half. He wasn’t alone, obviously. The entire Eagles defense collapsed last season, but Davis’s drop-off was dramatic.

First 7 games: 2 1/2 sacks, 5 QB hits, 2 TFLs, 1 FF

Last 10 games: 0 sacks, 0 QB hits, 0 TFLs, 0 FF

It’s not like a nose tackle’s play will always be judged by production on the stat sheet. That’s not fair. So much of a nose tackle’s job is to eat blocks to keep his teammates clean and free. But there’s no question that Davis wasn’t playing well down the stretch last year and it’s not much of a secret why. His conditioning suffered.

That has been Davis’s No. 1 goal this offseason: To improve his conditioning level.

While Davis is listed at 336 pounds, he weighed way more than that in 2023. This spring, he was down to 350 pounds from an unknown weight higher than that. Davis really needs to find a sweet spot. He needs to get in better shape and stay there.

He knows it:

“Obviously it looks a lot better than it did last year,” Davis said. “I feel a lot better than I did last year. We just continue on. We got a plan here and we just keep on working.”

His coaches know it:

“The No. 1 thing for him is just being in the best shape he possibly can be in,” DL coach Clint Hurtt said. “And he’s taken huge strides with that this offseason and it’s a work in progress but he’s off to a really, really good start. If he’s in great condition and he can play all out … Then he’s going to be a hard guy to block.”

His teammates know it:

“If you can’t tell, that boy look good,” edge rusher Nolan Smith said. “He nice and slim. He’s running around, he’s doing box drills like it’s nothing.”

Now, it’s just about doing it and not just in the spring or summer. It’s about Davis being in good enough shape to be productive for a full 17 game season and playoffs.

With the retirement of Fletcher Cox, there is going to be way more pressure on Davis and his Georgia teammate Jalen Carter in the middle of this Eagles’ defensive line.

So much of the Eagles’ defensive success under Vic Fangio in 2024 will hinge on those two. And they know it.

“I’ll be ready to answer the call,” Davis said. “I know what’s required of me, I know Vic is leaning on me. I know the D-line is leaning on us. So I definitely think I’ll be able to handle it. That what I’ve been working for. Nobody is coming to save us now.”

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The USMNT lost to Uruguay 1-0 in the final group game of the Copa America, ending its run early in the tournament.

With just two years to go until the 2026 World Cup on home soil, the Copa America was a chance for the U.S. to prove it can go far against quality teams. However, the U.S. couldn’t advance from a group comprising Uruguay, Panama and Bolivia.

At the minimum, the U.S. needed to advance past the group and see what would happen in the knockout stages. But consecutive losses to Panama and Uruguay saw that fall apart, with plenty of questions surrounding head coach Gregg Berhalter.

Berhalter was controversially re-hired in June of 2023, and nothing has changed since. Berhalter hasn’t been able to lift the U.S. to wins against tougher teams, with most successes coming against smaller sides.

Here’s how social media reacted to the USMNT’s Copa America exit:

The senior USMNT side will be back in action on Sept. 7 when it faces Canada, which advanced into the Copa America knockout rounds. Mexico also failed to qualify after finishing third in its group.

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Following a 1-0 loss to Uruguay on Monday, the USMNT was eliminated from the 2024 Copa America in the group stage.

It marks an indefensible exit with the U.S. also being in a group alongside Panama and Bolivia. Panama beat Bolivia 3-1 in their final group matchup, meaning the U.S. needed to beat Uruguay and maintain the goal-differential advantage. But it didn’t score once.

Gregg Berhalter opted to start Christian Pulisic at right wing with Tim Weah suspended, while Gio Reyna played off the left that allowed Yunus Musah to start. The opening 15 minutes featured intense physicality with the U.S. doing well to limit Uruguay’s typical fast starts and creating chances of its own.

But the U.S. couldn’t find the opener during that spell, and things worsened when Folarin Balogun had to be replaced in the 41st minute due to an injury. He had taken several fouls and eventually couldn’t continue, with Ricardo Pepi stepping in.

The biggest story from the first half, besides the camera angle, involved the referee. Kevin Ortega of Peru drew intense criticism for his lack of prowess. He didn’t set the tone with cards after hard fouls and also issued controversial cards.

His most perplexing moment involved letting play continue in Uruguay’s favor despite issuing a card to Chris Richards at the same time. Uruguay could’ve scored, but Tim Ream made a vital clearance. He also stopped advantage for the U.S. when Pulisic had an open lane down the right flank, calling a handball on Uruguay even though Pulisic was through.

Things ended 0-0 at the break, with the U.S. generating just 0.01 expected goals, via FotMob, despite its early momentum. Uruguay had 0.62 with one big chance missed.

The second half started rather slow until the 65th minute. That’s when Mathias Olivera opened the scoring after capitalizing on a Matt Turner parry. Upon review, Olivera appeared to be in an offside position but the following VAR check let it stand.

Berhalter then emptied the bench with his strikers, bringing on Josh Sargent and Haji Wright for Musah and Joe Scally. Malik Tillman also came in later for Tim Ream, but to no avail.

The last time the U.S. competed in the Copa America was in 2016, when it finished in fourth place after losing to Argentina 4-0 in the semifinals before falling to Colombia 1-0 in the third-place game.

Things started well when the U.S. beat Bolivia 2-0 in the opener, but an early Weah red card against Panama saw the team eventually falter 2-1, leading to the decisive Uruguay game.

The U.S. wasn’t the only early stunning exit, however, as fellow Concacaf side Mexico also failed to advance from a group that featured Venezuela, Ecuador and Jamaica. Mexico finished third, with the group finishing in that order.

This tournament was Berhalter’s first major one since his controversial re-hire in June of 2023. The U.S. Soccer Federation hoped Berhalter could take the team to new heights, especially ahead of the 2026 World Cup that will be hosted on home soil.

But not much as changed since. Berhalter has struggled to lead the U.S. to wins over top teams, with most successes coming over smaller sides. This is the most quality the U.S. has ever had, and it’s undoubtedly a failure not to advance past the Copa America group.

There will be plenty of questions about Berhalter’s future, but it’s not clear what the future holds for the team in its most important cycle.

After all, the decision wasn’t really up to the Flyers. They’re just happy to see him two years earlier than anticipated.

So on Monday, an hour and a half after the Flyers announced Michkov’s entry-level contract had ink on the dotted line, Briere smiled and offered the obvious.

“We’re excited that he’s finally coming,” the Flyers’ general manager said, one year and four days after calling Michkov’s name at the NHL draft. “I think there were a lot of things that needed to happen in the background, but that was mostly for him and the team in Russia and his representative.”

Last Tuesday, Michkov, a talented 19-year-old winger and inarguably the Flyers’ top prospect, was given his release from SKA St. Petersburg. For almost two months prior, it was all reports and speculation.

Michkov was only one year into his three-year deal to play in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league. That commitment and the uncertainty with the geopolitical landscape made Michkov drop to the Flyers at No. 7 in last summer’s draft. The Flyers couldn’t pass on him, especially after courting him leading up to the draft.

Now they have him.

And John Tortorella is ready to coach him.

“When I told Torts, he was really excited,” Briere said. “And that’s one of the things that I’m most excited about, too — the chance for Matvei to learn from a coach like Torts. I know he’s going to coach him the right way, just like he does everybody else. He’s going to be tough on him, he’s going to be fair and he’s going to teach him the right way.”

The 66-year-old has adapted over his 1,547 games as an NHL head coach. But he’s still John Tortorella. He will coach a player in a hard and direct way. Everyone is treated the same. There are no exceptions.

Michkov has been regarded for his competitiveness, even in practice. That should jibe with Tortorella (and his notorious skating test to open training camp).

“I think that’s some of the best news about all of this, he’s going to come here and nothing’s going to be given to him, he’s going to have to earn it,” Briere said. “Knowing how competitive we’ve been told he is, it’s going to be great, it’s going to be fun to see. I know I’m really excited about that matchup.”

The Flyers know Michkov has the capability of giving their rebuild a real jolt in the offensive department. But they will stress patience, as well. He’s a teenager jumping to the best league in the world. The language barrier is also a factor. The Flyers are going to provide Michkov a tutor to help him further grasp English and best communicate with the coaches. As a French Canadian, Briere had a similar transition in the AHL.

“We’re going to work with him,” Briere said. “I went through it, I barely knew any English when I started my first year pro in Springfield (Massachusetts). I get the culture difference is a lot less coming from Quebec than coming from Russia, but the players want to help and he’s going to be surrounded. Having Egor Zamula and Ivan Fedotov around, as well, we’re hoping will help his case, feel better and at home here.”

One of the next steps for the Flyers is adding more talent to put around Michkov down the road. They hope last weekend’s draft was a part of that initiative. Next summer, they have three first-round picks and three second-rounders.

“It’s a lot of picks early on, we’re going to try to leverage that the best we can,” Briere said. “It’s too early to tell if we’re going to pick or if we’re going to move them or if we’re going to use them to upgrade somewhere. But we’re going to look at all different scenarios.”

Once the offseason settles and September arrives, fans will have their eyes on Michkov. The touted youngster and the veteran head coach will get to work.

“Just on the power play alone, we hope that he can help us there,” Briere said. “As far as the rest of his game, he’s going to be in control of that and how much he’s committed to playing 200 feet for Torts. But look, to be honest, we don’t have really anyone like him in the organization as far as a player, as far as the skill level. He’s got a lot to learn and he’s not going to be put above anybody else, but he’s an exciting player and he’s a very talented player.”

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In terms of overall quality, it’s likely the strongest ever. The quartet of ex-Barcelona players on Inter Miami all made the cut — Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba — while the reigning champions Columbus Crew boasted five selections.

Additionally, Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy will lead the MLS All-Stars, who will take on the best of Mexico’s Liga MX on Wednesday, July 24 in Columbus.

It’s a return to a previous format for MLS after the All-Stars lost 5-0 to English Premier League‘s Arsenal last year.

Here’s a look at the roster by position:

Who is on the 2024 MLS All-Star Game roster?

These are the 30 players selected for the 2024 game:

GOALKEEPERS

• Roman Burki, St. Louis City
• Hugo Lloris, LAFC
• Maarten Paes, FC Dallas

DEFENDERS

• Jordi Alba, Inter Miami
• Rudy Camacho, Columbus Crew
• Justen Glad, Real Salt Lake
• Aaron Herrera, D.C. United
• Thiago Martins, NYCFC
• Steven Moreira, Columbus Crew
• Luca Orellano, FC Cincinnati
• Miles Robinson, FC Cincinnati
• Keegan Rosenberry, Colorado Rapids

MIDFIELDERS

• Luciano Acosta, FC Cincinnati
• Sergio Busquets, Inter Miami
• Mathieu Choiniere, CF Montreal
• Evander, Portland Timbers
• Ryan Gauld, Vancouver Whitecaps
• Hector Herrera, Houston Dynamo
• Robin Lod, Minnesota United
• Hany Mukhtar, Nashville
• Darlington Nagbe, Columbus Crew
• Riqui Puig, LA Galaxy

FORWARDS

• Christian Arango, Real Salt Lake
• Christian Benteke, D.C. United
• Federico Bernardeschi, Toronto
• Denis Bouanga, LAFC
• Cucho Hernandez, Columbus Crew
• Lionel Messi, Inter Miami
• Diego Rossi, Columbus Crew
• Luis Suarez, Inter Miami

When is the 2024 MLS All-Star Game?

The game is slated for Wednesday, July 24.

Where is the 2024 MLS All-Star Game?

Lower.com Field in Columbus, Ohio, is the venue for the game.

Who is the opponent in the 2024 MLS All-Star Game?

MLS is returning to a previous format where it will play the best players from Mexico’s Liga MX.

The team announced the move on Monday two days after blowing a two-goal lead in a 4-3 loss to Vancouver. St. Louis City (3-7-10) is 12th in the 14-team Western Conference a year after becoming the first expansion team to win a conference regular-season title.

The team lost to Kansas City in the first round of last year’s playoffs.

Technical Director John Hackworth will manage the team on an interim basis.

“Given Bradley’s many contributions to the club, this was not an easy decision,” St. Louis City Sporting Director Lutz Pfannenstiel said in a statement released by the team. “Unfortunately, based on our Year 2 results to date, we believe a coaching change is in the best interest of the club as we regroup and look to improve both our performance and our results.”

Carnell was hired as the team’s first manager in January 2022 and received a contract extension before this season.

St. Louis City faces San Jose on Wednesday night.

Of course, Skip Bayless was among those to share his thoughts, claiming the Mavericks would have beaten the Boston Celtics in the 2024 NBA Finals if Thompson had been on Dallas’ roster.

Bayless noted that Thompson would have been a significant upgrade over Dallas guard Tim Hardaway Jr., who averaged just 12 minutes over four Finals games and went scoreless in three of them.

In comparison, Thompson is a 39.8-percent 3-point shooter over 33 career games in the NBA Finals, never going scoreless in a playoff game, much less in the Finals. Thompson did struggle in the Warriors’ Western Conference play-in game last season against the Kings, though his regular-season totals from 2023-24 also easily eclipsed those of Hardaway.

It is still tough to say whether or not the Splash Brother would have been enough to reverse a 4-1 series win by the Celtics, but he almost certainly would have improved upon the Mavericks’ abysmal 31.6-percent shooting from behind the arc in the Finals.

Of course, Bayless also had to fire a shot at Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones to end the post. The 49ers will have to hope that the Bay Area-to-Dallas pipeline doesn’t become a thing across multiple sports.

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The last-16 game went to a shootout because Ronaldo’s extra-time spot kick in the 114th minute was saved by Slovenia goalkeeper Jan Oblak. Regulation and extra time finished 0-0.

When they went to penalties, Ronaldo scored his and Portugal’s first, and teammate Diogo Costa saved all three of Slovenia’s kicks, from Josip Ilicic, Jure Balkovec and Benjamin Verbič.

Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva also scored for Portugal to seal the shootout 3-0 with two shots to spare.

Portugal will face France in the quarterfinals on Friday in Hamburg, a rematch of the 2016 final that Portugal won in Paris.

Costa had already made his first save when Ronaldo walked up to take Portugal’s first kick of the shootout, and placed it perfectly low beyond Oblak diving to his right.

Ronaldo looked apologetically to the massed Portugal fans behind the goal and put his hands together as if in prayer. The fans responded with a bellowing shout of “Siuuuu” – their soccer icon’s trademark goal scream.

Costa answered the rest of those prayers with as good a penalty shootout as any goalkeeper ever had. Then he was in tears, too.

A half-hour earlier, Ronaldo was distraught and crying at halftime in extra time after his penalty was saved by Oblak, diving to his left to push the ball against a post.

It had been the latest victory for Oblak in their personal duel during a compelling 90 minutes of regulation time.

The intense extra time drama followed an intensely frustrating first 90 minutes for Ronaldo, who was — remarkably — still looking for his first goal at Euro 2024.

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After three free kicks and two mistimed headers, the Portugal star seemed sure to score with his first clear shooting chance in open play.

It came in the 89th, when he ran clear on goal with the ball passed perfectly into his stride. The left-foot shot was low and powerful but Oblak’s block was better. Ronaldo held out his arms in exasperation yet again.

The intense drama for the Portugal superstar almost overwhelmed the troubled evening for Slovenia’s emerging star.

Benjamin Šeško had golden chances to win the game, in the 62nd and 115th minutes, going one on one with Portugal goalie Costa after racing past 41-year-old defender Pepe.

The first was a weak shot that screwed wide of goal, and the second was powerful and accurate and saved by the outstretched boot of Costa.

Tatum inked a five-year, $315 million supermax extension with Boston on Monday, according to Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes, just one week after helping the C’s win their league-leading 18th NBA championship. The deal includes a player option.

The 26-year-old superstar completed the third year of the five-year, $163 million extension he signed with the Celtics in 2020, which included a $37 million player option for the final season.

Tatum’s massive deal tops Brown’s as the richest contract in NBA history. He was eligible for the supermax extension because he was named to an All-NBA team for the 2023-24 season.

The Celtics locking up their five-time All-Star long-term comes as no surprise, especially after bringing home Banner 18. Tatum and Brown are the foundation of the dynasty Boston hopes to build over the next several years.

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The C’s drafted Tatum out of Duke with the third overall pick in 2017, one year after taking Brown with the No. 3 selection. Since then, Tatum has appeared in five Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals, finally earning his first title earlier this month.

Tatum averaged 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists while shooting 47 percent from the floor over 74 games this past season. He notched 25.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game during the playoffs.

Tatum and Brown will cost the Celtics a pretty penny over the next few years, but it’s the price that must be paid for two of the game’s biggest stars. With Derrick White also locked up on a new deal, Boston is ready to run it back with mostly the same group for 2025 and beyond.

That’s because there are no specific age limit for taking part in the competition. As long as you show you’re good enough, you can compete against the world’s best, unless a specific sporting federation sets its own rule on age.

That paves the way for some incredibly young and talented athletes to make their mark early, such as 16-year-old American gymnast Hezly Rivera.

Rivera qualified for the U.S. women’s gymnastics team alongside stars like Simone Biles and Suni Lee. Along with Rivera, here are other young athletes to keep tabs on:

Who are the youngest Olympians in Paris?

Along with Rivera, here’s a list of young athletes in Paris along with the event they’ll be competing in:

• Zheng Haohao, China skateboarding: 11 years old
• Sky Brown, Great Britain skateboarding: 15 years old
• Hezly Rivera, Team USA gymnastics: 16 years old
• Quincy Wilson, Team USA track and field: 16 years old
• Lola Tambling, Great Britain skateboarding: 16 years old
• Dominika Banevič (B-Girl Nicka), Lithuania breaking: 17 years old
• Aubrey Kim, Team USA Paralympics swimming athlete alternate: 17 years old
• Minna Stess, Team USA skateboarding: 17 years old
• Alex Shackell, Team USA swimming: 17 years old
• Phoebe Gill, Great Britain track and field: 17 years old
• Summer McIntosh, Canada swimming: 17 years old
• Thomas Heilman, Team USA swimming: 17 years old
• Eva Okaro, Great Britain swimming: 17 years old
• Baptiste Addis, French recurve archery: 17 years old

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When is the Paris Olympics?

The 2024 Paris Olympics will run from Friday, July 26 to Sunday, Aug. 11.

How to watch the 2024 Olympics in Paris

NBC and Peacock will present live coverage of all Olympic events throughout each respective day.

Mary Tillman said there were other “far more fitting” recipients for the Pat Tillman Award, which was set up by ESPN in 2014 to recognize people “with a strong connection to sports” who have served others “in a way that echoes” her son’s legacy.

“I am shocked as to why they would select such a controversial and divisive individual to receive the award,” she told British newspaper the Daily Mail over the weekend. “There are individuals working in the veteran community that are doing tremendous things to assist veterans,” she added. “These individuals do not have the money, resources, connections or privilege that Prince Harry has.”

Tillman confirmed to NBC News that she had made the comments, but she declined a further interview.

NBC News has reached out to the Archewell Foundation — an organization founded by Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex — for comment.

Harry was selected for his “tireless work in making a positive impact for the veteran community through the power of sport,” ESPN said in a statement announcing this year’s recipient.

He was set to receive the award at the ESPYS in Los Angeles on July 11.

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Pat Tillman turned down a three-year, $3.6 million contract with the Arizona Cardinals to enlist in the military in May 2002. Deeply moved by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Tillman said he felt an obligation to make his life count.

“My great grandfather was at Pearl Harbor, and a lot of my family has … gone and fought in wars, and I really haven’t done a damn thing as far as laying myself on the line like that,” Tillman told NBC News on Sept. 12, 2001.

While serving in Khost Province in southeastern Afghanistan in April 2004, Tillman was killed during a firefight. Initially said to have been killed by enemy fire in a battle with the Taliban, the U.S. military later revealed that Tillman was killed by friendly fire.

Harry, a fellow Afghanistan veteran, served two tours in the country, before he went on to found the Invictus Games, an athletic competition for sick and wounded service personnel and veterans, in 2014.

In a statement late last month, the Invictus Games Foundation quoted Harry as saying the Pat Tillman Award was “for our entire service community.”

Emily Nash, royal editor of Hello! magazine, told NBC News on Monday that there “was a sense from some quarters that Harry already has a platform, he has already been recognized for his work in this field and perhaps this honor should go to those unsung heroes working behind the scenes.”

Nonetheless, a petition asking ESPN to rethink the honor for Harry had received nearly 30,000 signatures by Monday afternoon.

“While we understand not everyone will agree with all honorees selected for any award, the Invictus Games Foundation does incredible work and ESPN believes this is a cause worth celebrating,” an ESPN spokesperson told NBC News on Monday.

This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. More from NBC News:

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Hiltz, who uses they/them pronouns, charged ahead of Elle St. Pierre and Emily Mackay in the final stretch of the race, finishing with a time of 3:55:33, a trials record. All of the top eight finishers set a new personal best time, according to OutSports. Paris will mark Hiltz’s Olympic debut. 

In a post-race interview with NBC Sports, Hiltz, 29, said the race had significance beyond their personal accomplishment. 

“This is bigger than just me. It’s the last day of Pride Month .. I wanted to run this one for my community,” they said. “All the LGBT folks, yeah, you guys brought me home that last hundred [meters]. I could just feel the love and support.”

Hiltz said Elle St. Pierre, who finished third and was the top-finishing American in the Tokyo Olympics women’s 1500, pushed them and the other runners to go faster. St. Pierre was in the lead for most of the race, finishing the first lap in 61 seconds.

“Elle St. Pierre has elevated women’s distance running. I saw the time, and I didn’t think that was possible,” Hiltz told NBC Sports. “We all had to rise because of her … Awesome team we’re sending to Paris.”

Pierre and the second place finisher, Emily Mackay, also qualified for the Paris Olympics Sunday.

Hiltz wrote in a social media post Monday that a childhood dream of theirs came true when they qualified for the Paris Olympics. 

“I’m not sure when this will fully sink in,” they wrote. “All I know is today I’m waking up just so grateful for my people, overwhelmed by all the love and support, and filled with joy that I get to race people I deeply love and respect around a track for a living.”

The International Olympic Committee updated its rules regarding transgender athletes in 2021 to defer to each sport’s governing body.

World Athletics, which oversees international track and field competition, adopted a policy last year that bars all trans women athletes who went through male puberty from competing in female track and field categories. Trans men are allowed to compete in male categories if they have a satisfactory signed declaration of their gender identity.

World Athletics’ policy doesn’t specifically mention nonbinary athletes, but those who were assigned female at birth are generally allowed to compete in female categories if they haven’t received hormone therapy.

Hiltz will not be the first nonbinary athlete to participate in the Olympics. Canadian soccer star Quinn became the first openly transgender and nonbinary athlete to participate in the Olympics in Tokyo in 2022. They went on to become the first transgender athlete to win a medal at the Olympics when Canada beat Sweden 3-2 in penalty kicks. 

Quinn was among at least 186 out LGBTQ athletes who competed at the Tokyo Games, according to OutSports. Hiltz hasn’t been the only LGBTQ athlete to qualify for the Paris Olympics so far. Timo Cavelius of Germany will be the first out gay man to compete in Olympic judo, according to OutSports.

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The 35-year-old forward has agreed on a two-year, $9.6 million contract with the Clippers, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Monday.

Batum joined the Sixers very early last year via trade, leaving the Clippers as part of a James Harden-centered deal.

He meshed well in Philadelphia. Batum averaged 25.9 minutes for the Sixers and posted 5.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. He shot 39.9 percent from three-point range during the regular season and hit 9 of 22 triples (40.9 percent) in the Sixers’ first-round playoff series loss to the Knicks. 

Those numbers do not reflect much of Batum’s impact. Teammates like Joel Embiid regularly praised his poise, entry passing, pervasive intelligence and capacity to defend every position. The Sixers will miss all those qualities.

Batum’s 20 points in the Sixers’ play-in tournament win over the Heat were crucial, too. 

“I’ve played with a lot of great coaches, a lot of great players, so I’ve learned through the years,” he said after lifting the Sixers in that comeback victory. “I’ve been a pro for 18 years. This is my 18th year, if you count my pro season in France before I got drafted to the NBA. So I think I learned to be calm in the game.

“I try to understand who I play with. How can I be a great fit with Tyrese (Maxey)? How can I help Joel space-wise? How can I talk to those guys? … I don’t have the same legs, but I’ve still got my brain, so I just try to think the game and help my teammates be in the right positions.”

With Batum and Tobias Harris exiting, the Sixers still clearly have work to do at forward.

They’ve agreed to add Paul George in a massive move and also reached deals with Kelly Oubre Jr., Andre Drummond and Eric Gordon over the first day of free agency.

The event, which took place at Aruba’s pristine Eagle Beach, drew from a pool of vacationers who applied after receiving a QR code while staying at hotels on the island.

Participants sat for more than an hour — disconnected from phones — during the beach’s sunset with a calming breeze.

However, the event was not a total paradise.

Contestants were given heart monitors to track their heart rate. The competition threw “curveballs” at contestants to see if they could remain on island time amid turmoil around them.

“We would like throw in these curveballs to try to get people to get their heart rate accelerated,” White said in an interview with NBC Local. “So we have like kids run through kicking sand or starting a squirt gun fight.”

White said he had a blast hosting the event, and that people kept asking him how he would prepare for such an event.

White just advised people to remain calm and focus on the beautiful Caribbean island around them.

“I mean, it’s pretty hard to get worked up while you’re down there. Everyone’s on island time it’s just like the most relaxing, incredible place,” White said.

The winner of the competition will be named the “World’s Greatest Relaxer” when the competition airs in August.

The top three winners will also get amazing prizes for their relaxing performance:

• Gold – “The Ultimate Aruba Vacation” includes a four-night stay at the iconic Ritz Carlton, Aruba, two round-trip flights to Aruba, and dinner for two at Infini, the hottest culinary ticket on the island.
• Silver – “The Ultimate Aruba Weekend”: a three night stay at the Renaissance Wind Creek Aruba, a full spa day at the world-famous Renaissance Island, and dinner for two at the buzz-worthy OLIVIA.
• Bronze –  “The Ultimate Rejuvenation Package”: a romantic cruise with Pelican Adventures, private island tour with Isla Aruba, and relaxing massage for two from Aruba Wellness Therapies, to be redeemed during the remainder of their stay.

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Matvei Michkov is going to be a Philadelphia Flyer for the 2024-25 NHL season. It’s one of those “Where were you when …” moments that you’ll never forget.

Michkov’s contract with SKA St. Petersburg was terminated June 25 and he officially signed his three-year entry-level contract Monday.

The Flyers took a risk in the 2023 NHL Draft when selecting the Russian forward seventh overall. But you know what they say about a high risk … high reward.

The No. 1 prospect in the organization has rejuvenated Flyers fans, who have sat on the fence with the franchise in recent years. They’ll welcome the 19-year-old winger to Philadelphia with open arms.

Let’s check in on how everyone is reacting to the news. Heads up – it’s as crazy and chaotic as you’d expect it to be (in the best way possible):

We should’ve known:

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After 13 NBA seasons and four championships, Klay Thompson’s Golden State Warriors career is over.

Thompson has agreed to a three-year, $50 million contract with the Dallas Mavericks, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Monday, citing sources.

Wojnarowski also reported that Thompson had four-year offers for more money on the table, but decided to take less to pursue a fifth championship with Dallas, who represented the Western Conference in the NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics this summer.

The Warriors still are working through sign-and-trade details with the Mavericks and a Thompson deal is “not close,” TNT’s Chris Haynes reported shortly after.

Thompson and the Warriors reportedly began negotiating a contract extension almost one year ago, and after a potentially uncomfortable standoff, it appears the five-time All-Star will take his talents elsewhere.

After missing both the 2019-2020 and 2020-21 seasons with consecutive leg injuries, Thompson triumphantly returned to the court in 2022, where he helped the Warriors secure their fourth championship in eight years.

Thompson then led the NBA in 3-pointers during an up-and-down 2022-23 season before his inconsistencies persisted throughout the 2023-24 season.

In 77 games (63 starts) last season, Thompson averaged 17.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists on 43.2-percent shooting from the field and 38.7 percent from 3-point range for the Warriors in a season that saw him come off the bench for the first time in his career.

Both Thompson and the Warriors were vocal about their desire to work out a deal and for the Splash Brother to finish his illustrious NBA career with Golden State, but it appears Thompson’s asking price was too high for the Warriors.

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Following two months of reports, questions and speculation, the No. 1 prospect in the organization signed his three-year entry-level contract Monday, a little over a year after being drafted by the Flyers at seventh overall.

Michkov was officially released by his KHL club SKA St. Petersburg last Tuesday, clearing the way for the 19-year-old winger to pursue his NHL dream in Philadelphia. On Monday, he put ink to paper.

“I’m extremely happy to officially become a part of the Flyers family,” Michkov said in a statement released by the team. “Being in the NHL has been a dream for me since childhood. I would like to say a huge thank you to the Flyers management for their trust. I will do everything possible to meet their expectations. I can’t wait to join my teammates and start preparing for the new season together, and I would especially like to greet our fans. We have the same dream to win the Stanley Cup and I promise that I will do my best to help this team and make that possible.”

More: Briere says Tortorella will coach Michkov ‘just like he does everybody else’

Michkov is coming to the Flyers two years earlier than anticipated. When he was drafted last summer, the 2026-27 season was the expectation for his arrival because of his three-year contract to play in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league. That and the precarious geopolitical landscape made Michkov drop down the board.

But the Flyers courted Michkov prior to the draft, making them comfortable with the risk and wait.

“We took a big swing, but we hope that this turns out to be a home run,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said at the 2023 draft. “Time will tell, it’s a little early, but we feel when he’s ready to come, he could really be a difference-maker. That’s the risk that we were willing to take, to wait a little bit to hopefully have a difference-maker on our hands.”

More: How Flyers prospect Michkov’s rise was evident in ‘a title fight’

Last season, Michkov played only one game for SKA St. Petersburg, one of the premier teams in Russia. After sitting three times and playing just 6:12 minutes in his lone appearance, he was loaned to Sochi, a lesser KHL team. He put up 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games.

“Matvei was extremely frustrated not playing,” Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr said last September. “He had a goal of being the top scorer in the league and he was sitting there. They have 40-something players on their roster. Obviously he was frustrated. As a young guy in Russia, you kind of have to bite your tongue and just put in the work and hopefully you get to play.”

As a teenager playing against men, Michkov recorded 66 points (30 goals, 36 assists) in 91 career KHL games. He tore up the junior level in his home country, putting up 68 goals and 107 points over 84 career MHL games.

He now becomes what the Flyers hope is a pillar to their process, both in the present and future.

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The U.S. will have chances to earn its first medals in breaking, the lone new event debuting at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, but there are also older sports where the country is still chasing its first medals. Based on its Olympic history and outlook in Paris, it could be a while before the U.S. bucks the trend, too.

Here are the five Summer Olympics sports where the U.S. has never taken home hardware:

Badminton

The U.S. has had a tough time even advancing within the five badminton tournaments at the Olympics. Men’s and women’s singles and doubles have been full-medal events since 1992, while mixed doubles entered in 1996. In eight Olympics with the sport involved, the U.S. has only reached the quarterfinals of any tournament one time, as the men’s doubles team of Howard Bach and Bob Malaythong reached the round of eight in the 2008 Beijing Games.

Beiwen Zhang got two wins in women’s singles at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics before falling in the round of 16. Timothy Lam (singles) and brothers Phillip Chew and Ryan Chew (doubles) went winless on the men’s side.

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Handball

The U.S. has not even qualified for the men’s and women’s Olympic handball tournaments since 1996, when it was the host nation for the Atlanta Games.

The men’s squad has participated in the Olympic tournament six times with its highest finish in sixth place back in 1936 — when there were only six teams in the competition. The men’s team has won four total games across its six Olympic appearances.

The women’s squad has made it to the Olympics four times, all coming from 1984 to 1996. Its top finish was fifth place out of six teams in 1984.

Rhythmic gymnastics

Rhythmic gymnastics made its Olympic debut as an individual event in 1984 and added a team event in 1996. Europe has completely dominated the sport since the beginning, with China, Canada and Israel as the only three countries from other continents to claim a medal across 10 Olympics.

The United States’ highest finish in the event is 11th place, reached by Valerie Zimring during the boycotted 1984 Games in Los Angeles, Laura Zeng during the 2016 Games in Rio and the U.S. team in Tokyo. The team’s appearance in the 2016 Games was its first since the group was given a host country spot in 1996. The team finished in 14th place out of 14 teams in Rio before improving to 11th out of 14 teams at the most recent Olympics.

Table tennis

The U.S. has not won a medal in table tennis since it was introduced as an Olympic sport in 1988, despite being one of 16 countries to participate in the sport at each of the last 10 Olympics.

Chen Wang owns the best American finish in Olympic table tennis history after reaching the women’s singles quarterfinals in Beijing. Juan Liu had the most successful run of any American table tennis player in Tokyo, advancing to the women’s singles fourth round as the No. 68 seed.

Trampoline

Trampoline will be making its seventh Olympic appearance during the Paris Games. Ten countries have combined to win the 36 medals doled out since 2000, but the U.S. has not taken home any of them.

Savannah Vinsant and Nicole Ahsinger had the best finishes of any Americans, placing sixth in 2012 and 2020, respectively.

The league announced changes to the All-Star staple on Monday, tinkering with the tournament system it first implemented in 2015. The main tweaks will limit the number of pitches each hitter can face in each round and reconfigure the opening round of the event.

In the first round and the semifinals, each hitter will either get 40 pitches or spend three minutes at the plate — whichever occurs first. Those numbers will shrink to 27 pitches and two minutes for the final round. Hitters will also get bonus pitches until they hit into three outs during the period, and a fourth out is given if the batter hits at least one home run that travels at least 425 feet during the period.

The previous Home Run Derby format featured a time limit but did not restrict the number of pitches a contestant could face.

The other major change coming to the derby involves the opening round. Instead of head-to-head quarterfinal matchups, all eight contestants will compete against one another in the first round with the top four finishers moving on.

From there, batters will square off in head-to-head semifinals before the last two players standing square off in the final round for the Home Run Derby crown. Seeding for the semifinals will be determined by first-round scores.

If there is a tie with multiple players hitting the same number of homers in the first round, the tiebreaker will go to the player who hit the longest home run during the round. Ties in the semifinals and finals will be broken with a 60-second swing-off. If a tie remains after the swing-off, the batters will engage in successive three-swing swing-offs until a winner is determined.

Where is the 2024 MLB Home Run Derby?

The 2024 MLB Home Run Derby will be held at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, home to the Texas Rangers.

When is the 2024 MLB Home Run Derby?

The event will begin at 8 p.m. ET on Monday, July 15, and be broadcasted on ESPN.

The two-time Cup champion snapped his 49-race winless streak at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday after a miraculous 110-lap run on a single tank of fuel. All of Logano’s competitors ran out of gas while he managed to hold on for a record-setting five overtime restarts.

Logano is the 11th driver to win in 2024, which leaves just five playoff spots unclaimed with seven races remaining in the regular season.

Next up is the second NASCAR Chicago Street Race, with the Grant Park 165 scheduled for Sunday on NBC. How does the field stack up heading into the Windy City? Here’s our latest NASCAR power rankings:

1. Kyle Larson

Last week: 1

For the first time all season, Larson has gone consecutive races without leading a lap. The 2021 champion finished eighth in Nashville after being involved in two of the overtime cautions. It wasn’t the cleanest race by any means, but it was enough to regain the overall points lead.

2. Denny Hamlin

Last week: 3

Hamlin was seconds away from winning in regulation … then he was seconds away from winning in double overtime … then he ran out of fuel. He recovered to finish 12th because of all the chaos around him, but Hamlin’s day should’ve ended a lot better. 

3. Christopher Bell

Last week: 4

The driver who crashed out and finished 36th rises in the power rankings? That’s what happens when you lead a race-high 131 laps and win both stages. Bell’s top-10 streak was snapped at five races, but the No. 20 team has more speed than anyone right now.

4. Chase Elliott

Last week: 2

Despite two spins and running out of fuel, Elliott still finished 18th to keep his top-20 streak alive. The 2020 champion is the first driver since 1991 and fourth ever to finish top-20 in the first 19 races of a season. Elliott finished third in Chicago last year and leads all active drivers with seven career road course wins.

5. Ryan Blaney

Last week: 5

Blaney appeared to be on the wrong fuel strategy before all of the overtime restarts. All of the calamity saved his day, though, and he crossed the line in sixth. The defending champion rolls into Chicago looking to improve on his 33rd place finish from last year.

6. Tyler Reddick

Last week: 8

Third-place was a massive disappointment for Reddick, who was clearly dejected after the race. He had fresher tires and more fuel, but just couldn’t get around Logano in the final overtime. Still, he scored a race-high 51 points and now heads to Chicago as one of the series’ best road racers.

7. Brad Keselowski

Last week: 7

Like Bell and Elliott, Keselowski spun in the final stage. He went multiple laps down with a damaged car and finished 25th after placing fifth in the first two stages. Keselowski has now finished 25th or worse in consecutive races for the first time since the first two races of 2024.

8. William Byron

Last week: 6

Byron got shuffled out of the top-10 midway through the race, had a poor pit stop and then couldn’t get through traffic at all. He ended up finishing 19th, which was better than it looked before all of the overtimes. After three wins in the first eight races this season, Byron has finished 15th or worse in six of the last nine weeks.

9. Ross Chastain

Last week: 9

It was almost back-to-back Nashville wins for Chastain before he was wrecked in overtime. The 33rd-place finish won’t help him on the playoff bubble, but the speed he showed in the final stage is promising for Trackhouse Racing – the same organization that won in Chicago last July.

10. Joey Logano

Last week: First four out

This had to feel good for Logano. Through 18 races, he was on pace for his worst average finish since 2012 and his first time missing the playoffs since 2017. But now he’s locked into the postseason, where Logano will battle for a third title. His 33rd career win puts him into a tie for 27th on the all-time list with Hall of Famer Fireball Roberts.

First four out: Martin Truex Jr., Chris Buescher, Ty Gibbs, Alex Bowman

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The north-south, hard-hitting winger was entering the final year of his two-year, $4.75 million contract. He’s now under contract for the next three seasons, with his new deal starting in 2025-26 and having an average annual value of $2.4 million.

“Garnet has been a great addition to our team and we’re very happy to extend him to be a Flyer for the next several seasons,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said in a statement released by the team. “His style of play and level of professionalism had a big effect on our group last season, and he embodies the standard our team set out to build both on and off the ice.”

Hathaway was one of four Flyers to play all 82 games last season. He chipped in 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) over 12:29 minutes per game and had the NHL’s second-most hits with 326. The 32-year-old is also a key penalty killer for the Flyers, scoring one of the team’s league-leading 16 shorthanded goals.

“A player like that, you’re going into next year and you get to the trade deadline, and if the team’s not doing well, now you’re thinking, ‘Are we trading him?'” Briere said Monday. “Now you’ve got to negotiate with him and all the teams start calling, [the AAV] can escalate in the [$3 million range]. We wanted to keep the cap hit [around] the same. When we saw that he was also willing to extend for pretty much the same cap hit, it got interesting for us.”

Some may argue that a rebuilding team shouldn’t commit too many years to an older role player. But Hathaway’s role is an important one and the Flyers are still going to be a young group up front moving forward. They could have eight forwards 25 years old or younger in their 2024-25 season-opening lineup.

“When we heard last year, you heard me say it, other teams are telling us we’re hard to play against, he’s a big reason why,” Briere said. “Coming into Philadelphia and having to face players like him, it’s not fun.”

Hathaway has been a tone-setter for how the Flyers want to play and he stands up for his teammates, an important quality with many young forwards.

“That’s what we’ve built on,” Hathaway said in April, “that’s what this organization has brought in to create a culture that plays for each other, that builds that team camaraderie.”

The next question is will the Flyers avoid a contract year with Travis Konecny? The team’s All-Star and leading scorer is entering the final year of his six-year, $33 million deal. He’s in line for a pretty good raise from his $5.5 million average annual value and at his exit interview he sounded open to signing an extension.

“Nothing new,” Briere said Monday on the Konecny front. “This is the first day that officially we could extend him. I’ve said from the beginning, I’m not going to negotiate through the media. But we love Travis and we hope he’s here for a long time.”

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The news from Boston Basketball Partners LLC comes within weeks of the Celtics’ championship parade through Boston to celebrate the franchise’s record-setting 18th title.

The sale is expected to begin later this year or early next year, with owner Wyc Grousbeck ending his term as governor when the sale closes in 2028.

The Celtics were valued at $4.7 billion — the fourth highest in the NBA — in the latest Forbes ranking.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the news, citing sources, that the majority ownership group was planning to make the Celtics available to be sold.

Adam Himmelsbach, of The Boston Globe, then reported that Wyc Grousbeck specifically was looking to put his stake in the team up for sale, citing a league source. He added that “this potential sale is not expected to include the entire investment group that purchased the team in 2002.”

The Grousbeck-led ownership group has won two titles since buying the Celtics in 2002. There are four managers of Boston Basketball Partners, LLC: Grousbeck; his father, H. Irving Grousbeck; Steve Pagliuca; and Robert Epstein.

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“The Bears are actually granting him a couple days off from training camp, so he’ll be there, yes,” Biles told USA Today. “For just a short time.”

Biles, who made her third U.S. Olympic gymnastics team over the weekend, married Owens in 2023. Although the couple has been together since 2020, this will be the first time Owens will get to watch Biles compete on the world’s biggest stage. Spectators weren’t allowed at the Tokyo Games in 2021 due to COVID regulations.

Bears training camp begins July 23, three days before the Olympic Opening Ceremony.

“Anytime we can show up for one another in support, we just get super excited because our schedules don’t align that much,” Biles said. “So whenever it does, it’s really important for the both of us to show up in support.”

Owens, 28, signed with the Bears this offseason after one season with the Green Bay Packers.

Click here to follow the Under Center Podcast.

Although the three-time Olympic gold medalist hung up his snowboard after the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, White is still paying close attention to Team USA, especially the skateboarding team.

The 37-year-old revealed to NBC Local who his favorite skateboarder is, and why.

“He’s Heimana Reynolds,” White revealed. “And he’s just like, he’s from Hawaii. I don’t even know if he owns a T-shirt. The guy’s just the Hawaii style.”

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Reynolds, who is set for his first Olympics in Paris, is from Honolulu and has said that White is his Olympic role model.

“He is an amazing competitor that worked extremely hard to get to where he is today,” Reynolds said of White to NBC Sports. “He definitely deserved all of his accomplishments. We have grown close this past year and I can still say his one of my biggest role models.”

However, for White, his excitement for Reynolds partly comes from knowing the guy he is off the track.

“(An) incredibly talented skateboarder, (and) the nicest guy you could imagine,” White said of Reynolds. “When he’s not training and competing, he’s in Hawaii, teaching young kids how to skate at the skate park that his family operates.”

“So I’m really pulling for him, it’s gonna be awesome,” White added.

What other sports is Shaun White excited for at the 2024 Olympics?

Along with being a skateboarding enthusiast, White is also thrilled to see surfing at this year’s games in Tahiti.

Despite the games taking place in Paris, surfing will take place on the French Polynesian island due to its killer waves.

“I’m definitely gonna tune in to watch,” White said. “But what I do know about Tahiti is that the waves just like, they (are) pumped there. They’re big, they’re fun. You know, it’s not like a destination that doesn’t get amazing swell.”

“It’s definitely exciting that this is a place that is gonna like produce some really incredible waves for the athletes,” White added. “So, I don’t know, I’m just excited to tune in and watch for sure.”

After nine days of intense competition at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Track and Field Team Trials held in Eugene, Oregon, the top finishers in each event secured a spot on the prestigious roster.

The full roster will not be unveiled until later this month, but we have a lengthy list of athletes who qualified in Oregon.

Get to know Team USA’s track and field roster for the 2024 Olympics in Paris:

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2024 Paris Olympics Dec 13, 2023

2024 Paris Olympics: See dates, sports, how to watch and more

Who’s on the Team USA track and field team for the 2024 Olympics?

Here’s a full look at Team USA’s track and field roster by event:

Track events

Men’s 100m
Noah Lyles
Kenny Bednarek
Fred Kerley

Men’s 110m hurdles
Grant Holloway
Freddie Crittenden
Daniel Roberts

Men’s 200m
Noah Lyles
Kenny Bednarek
Erriyon Knighton

Men’s 400m
Quincy Hall
Michael Norman
Chris Bailey

Men’s 400m hurdles
Raj Benjamin
CJ Allen
Trevor Bassitt

Men’s 800m
Bryce Hoppel
Hobbs Kessler
Brandon Miller

Men’s 1,500m
Cole Hocker
Yared Nuguse
Hobbs Kessler

Men’s 5,000m
Grant Fisher
Abdihamid Nur

Men’s 10,000m
Grant Fisher
Woody Kincaid
Nico Young

Men’s steeplechase
Kenneth Rooks
Matthew Wilkinson

Women’s 100m
Sha’Carri Richardson
Melissa Jefferson
Twanisha Terry

Women’s 100m hurdles
Masai Russell
Alaysha Johnson
Grace Stark

Women’s 200m
Gabby Thomas
Brittany Brown
McKenzie Long

Women’s 400m
Kendall Ellis
Aaliyah Butler
Alexis Homes

Women’s 400m hurdles
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone
Anna Cockrell
Jasmine Jones

Women’s 800m
Nia Akins
Allie Wilson
Juliette Whittaker

Women’s 5,000m
Elle St. Pierre
Elisa Cranny
Karissa Schweizer

Women’s 10,000m
Weini Kelati
Parker Valby*
Parissa Scheweizer*
* – World rankings will determine Olympic status

Women’s steeplechase
Valerie Constien
Courtney Wayment
Marisa Howard

Field events

Men’s decathlon
Heath Baldwin
Zach Ziemek
Harrison Williams

Men’s discuss
Andrew Evans
Joseph Brown

Men’s hammer
Daniel Haugh
Rudy Winkler

Men’s high jump
Shelby McEwen
JuVaughn Harrison

Men’s javelin
Curtis Thompson
Capers Williamson*
Donavon Banks*
* – World rankings will determine Olympic status

Men’s long jump
Malcolm Clemons
Jarrion Lawson

Men’s pole vault
Sam Kendricks
Chris Nilsen
Jacob Wooten

Men’s shot put
Ryan Crouser
Joe Kovacs
Payton Otterdahl

Men’s triple jump
Salif Mane
Donald Scott

Heptathlon
Anna Hall
Chari Hawkins
Taliyah Brooks

Women’s discus
Valarie Allman
Jayden Ulrich
Veronica Fraley

Women’s hammer
Annette Echikunwoke
DeAnna Price
Erin Reese

Women’s high jump
Rachel Glenn
Vashti Cunningham

Women’s javelin
Maggie Malone Hardin

Women’s long jump
Tara Davis-Woodhall
Jasmine Moore
Monae’ Nichols

Women’s pole vault
Bridget Williams
Katie Moon
Brynn King

Women’s shot put
Chase Jackson
Raven Saunders
Jaida Ross

Women’s triple jump
Jasmine Moore
Keturah Orji
Tori Franklin

Marathons and race walks

Men’s marathon
Conner Mantz
Clayton Young
Leonard Korir

Women’s marathon
Fiona O’Keeffe
Emily Sisson
Dakotah Lindwurm

When do track and field events at the 2024 Olympics start?

Athletics events for the 2024 Paris Olympics will be held from Aug. 1-11. The action concludes with the women’s marathon on Sunday, Aug. 11, the same day as the Closing Ceremony.

Where are the 2024 Olympic track and field events being held?

Stade de France will play host to all track and field events for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The venue, which is the country’s largest stadium, will also host rugby matches during the Games.

He’ll be a part of it again, this time from the start, as the Flyers re-signed the 36-year-old veteran to a one-year, $1 million contract Monday.

The Flyers gave up a 2024 fourth-round draft pick for Johnson to provide stability on the back end last season. The club’s defensive depth was decimated down the stretch by injuries and the trade of Sean Walker.

Johnson will give the Flyers a reliable presence in 2024-25 and a good example for their younger blueliners. He has played in 987 career NHL games and won the 2022 Stanley Cup with the Avalanche.

“We’re very happy to bring Erik back for next season,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said in a statement released by the team. “Since arriving at the deadline, Erik has fit seamlessly into our locker room and logged important minutes for us. His presence and championship experience, especially for our defensive core of players, will be valuable for our team throughout an entire season.”

In 17 games with the Flyers, Johnson had two goals, an assist, 50 hits, 29 blocked shots and a minus-9 rating. The 2006 first overall pick had high praise for the Flyers’ locker room.

“I didn’t know anybody on the team, so it was all new to me,” Johnson said March 26 before a game at Madison Square Garden. “But it didn’t take long to see that these guys care about winning and care about each other. If you have those two things, you can do a lot of great things as a team. It has been a lot of fun coming to the rink every day.

“It stands out because I think it’s pretty unique. I haven’t been in a lot of ones that have been this good. I just think there’s a time and place to have fun and there’s a time and place to focus, and I think this team has a really good balance of that. I think they definitely care about each other a lot.”

He’ll be the oldest and most established player on a team that has the potential to take another step but will not lose focus of its rebuild. As of right now, the Flyers’ defensive group is looking like it will be Johnson, Travis Sanheim, Cam York, Nick Seeler, Jamie Drysdale, Egor Zamula and Rasmus Ristolainen. Ronnie Attard, Adam Ginning and Emil Andrae should be pushing for games, too.

York, Drysdale and Zamula are 24 years old or younger. Briere clearly values Johnson’s influence on them.

“His leadership in the room was amazing,” the Flyers’ GM said Monday. “He was fantastic, some of the players loved him, the coaches all loved him. It’s intangibles that he brings. Look, at the end of the day, he’s also a 6-foot-4, right-shot defenseman. He’s not going to be in the way, slowing the growth of our young guys. He’s there to help them grow, that’s the way we see it.”

Briere has a good read on the defenseman. They were teammates on the Avalanche in 2014-15, Briere’s final NHL season.

“We had a really good relationship in Colorado,” Johnson said. “He was only there the one year and I was in my mid-20s. I remember really looking up to him and respecting him a ton, and still did. We kept in touch over the years since he retired. If we didn’t have that good relationship, maybe I’m not here right now, I don’t know. But I know we each had a mutual respect for each other.

“When he was in Colorado, everyone looked up to him and he always had very good words of wisdom to tell our younger team. Things kind of have come full circle and now I’m kind of in that role that he was, towards the end of my career. It’s kind of funny how it all works out because Danny and I remain close and now we can have a chance to do something special together.”

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Which BMX freestyle discipline is contested at the Olympics?

There are multiple disciplines within BMX freestyle, but the only one contested at the Olympics is BMX park. It takes place on a course that includes features such as ramps, box jumps, walls and spines.

How many riders will compete in BMX freestyle at the 2024 Olympics?

The fields for men’s and women’s BMX freestyle each have 12 riders. A maximum of two men and two women can compete from a single country.

How does BMX freestyle work at the Olympics?

In each round of competition, riders complete two runs through the course. Each run lasts 60 seconds.

During their runs, riders will use obstacles on the park course to execute a variety of tricks. Each run will be scored by a panel of judge, and those results will determine the rankings.

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How is BMX freestyle scored at the Olympics?

Judges score each run from 0-100 points based on “overall impression.” Criteria considered by the judges includes:

• Difficulty of tricks
• Progression (landing a trick that’s never been done before)
• Variety of tricks
• Creativity of tricks
• Execution (e.g. when doing a Superman, the rider should extend their arms and legs fully)
• Landing tricks cleanly (e.g. a rider putting their feet down would be an error)
• Amplitude (height of the tricks)
• Flow
• Creative use of the course (finding unique lines)
• Risk factor (level of danger inherent in the tricks)
• Style (rider making tricks their own)

In the qualification round, riders will be ranked by the average score of their two runs. In the final, riders will be ranked by their best single-run score.

It’s worth noting that scores are not standardized between different events. Each contest, and even each round, can end up with a different scoring “scale” based on a variety of factors. Essentially, each score serves as an anchor from which to compare other runs relative to it.

What is the competition format for BMX freestyle at the Olympics?

In the qualification round, 12 riders will be split into two separate heats. Each rider will complete two runs, and the average of their two runs will determine their overall score. The top-nine riders will advance to the final, where they will be seeded according to their overall scores.

In the final, the nine remaining riders compete in reverse order of seeding. (The top rider from the qualification round goes last for both sets of runs.) Each rider completes two runs, but only their best score is used in the final rankings. The rider with the highest single-run score wins the gold medal.

BMX freestyle schedule for the 2024 Olympics

BMX freestyle action will take place across two days.

Men’s and women’s qualifying will be held on July 30 ahead of the finals for each event on July 31.

Other Olympic cycling disciplines

Learn the rules and competition formats for other cycling disciplines at the Paris Olympics.

• Road cycling
• Track cycling
• Mountain biking
• BMX racing

Harris has agreed to go to the Pistons on a two-year, $52 million contract, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported.

Harris has played 157 of his 897 career games for the Pistons. His longest NBA stint yet is with the Sixers, who acquired him from the Clippers in February of 2019. After the team’s heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the Raptors in that year’s Eastern Conference semifinals, Harris then inked a five-year, $180 million deal to stay in Philadelphia. 

Though he had some solid seasons and strong first-round playoff series, Harris failed to help the Sixers advance beyond Round 2. He went scoreless on 0-for-2 shooting in the Sixers’ season-ending loss to the Knicks this year.

“It was a tough year just because of the injuries that we had as a group,” Harris said. “I think that we definitely showed we have the talent in this locker room and on this team. I wish we would’ve had more time to jell, and to see it through and have everyone healthy.

“But it was an up and down year for us as a group. We were composed in this series. We definitely came out game after game and gave our all in this series. Just an unfortunate result.” 

Over his tenure as a Sixer, Harris averaged 17.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists during the regular season. At the moment, his 575 made three-pointers rank fourth in Sixers history.

Detroit is in a decidedly different situation than the Sixers, who have picked up Paul George and plan to contend for a championship. Cade Cunningham and Ausar Thompson are among the youthful core pieces for a Pistons team that went an NBA-worst 14-68 last season. 

Harris mentored youngsters like Tyrese Maxey and Ricky Council IV with the Sixers. 

“I can’t even put everything into words,” Council said at his exit interview, “but he’s helped me a lot. He gets a lot of hate and I don’t know where it comes from. He’s a really good person. … The professionalism from Tobias is unreal. And that’s why I was glad I had him in my corner this whole year. I appreciate him for that, wherever he’s at next year.”