Three members of the Rockets were fined on Thursday, the NBA announced in a press release. Head coach Ime Udoka was docked $50K, forward Tari Eason was penalized $35K, and center Alperen Sengun received a $15K fine.
All three members of the organization were fined for incidents that occurred on Tuesday, when Houston lost by nine points in Sacramento. Udoka and Sengun each received a pair of technical fouls and were ejected with just under two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
According to the league, Udoka was fined for “confronting and directing profane language toward a game official, failing to leave the court in a timely manner after being ejected and public criticism of the officiating during his postgame press conference.”
Sengun was hit with a less severe fine for “directing inappropriate language toward a game official.”
The NBA says Eason was fined for a postgame incident in which he threw a towel and directed inappropriate language toward a fan in the spectator stands. However, Sam Amick of The Athletic is surprised the league failed to mention the fact that Eason tried to enter the stands to confront the heckling fan and had to be held back by security officials.
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LeBron James wasn't present at Luka Doncic's contract extension news conference. That doesn't necessarily mean anything, and he's more than entitled to some time off the clock just like everybody else. However, given all that has been said about his future with the Los Angeles Lakers, it didn't take long before people speculated whether there was something else going on. The Athletic's Dan Woike reports that there's nothing to it. "James has not asked for a trade or a contract buyout, team and league sources have said. He’ll turn 41 on Dec. 30," wrote Woike. James' agent and friend, Rich Paul, also made it loud and clear that he hasn't even talked about potentially leaving the Lakers, and while he still doesn't know if he'll re-sign with them or will continue to play beyond this season, that's a bridge they'll cross when they get there. Lakers GM Rob Pelinka also shut down rumors by pointing out that he's been in constant talks with James and his camp. “Yeah, so all the interactions we’ve had with LeBron and his camp, Rich (Paul) in particular, have been positive and supportive. So very professional and Rich has been great,” Pelinka said. “The dialogue with him has been open and constant.” The Lakers are doing the right thing by pivoting towards their younger star. Whether this will be the end of the line for James in Southern California remains to be seen.
The New York Jets opted to cut Aaron Rodgers and sign Justin Fields to replace him during the offseason. This kind of commitment to Fields should bolster his confidence, but it could also place a lot of pressure on his shoulders. To this point, Fields has looked solid in training camp, aside from a scary toe injury that was quickly resolved in July. Justin Fried of the Jet Press recently reported that Fields' training camp may have reached a new low over the weekend as the young signal caller struggled. "Justin Fields put together his best practice of the summer to this point on Friday, completing his first 12 passes en route to an excellent all-around performance. The same can't be said about his showing on Saturday, however," Fried wrote. "Fields finished the day an abysmal 2-of-10 in the air, including a drop from rookie tight end Mason Taylor. "Some of his incompletions were catchable balls, but the Jets' passing game struggles on Saturday can largely be blamed on No. 7. Fields did flash his running ability with a 25-yard rushing score on the first play of red-zone drills, but the Jets would like to see more consistency in the air from the starting quarterback. Saturday's scrimmage was far from his best showing of the summer." Fields is a runner first at the NFL level, but his arm is nothing to scoff at. For most of training camp, his arm talent has been better than advertised, but during Saturday's scrimmage, it just wasn't there. A 2 for 10 performance is unacceptable for a $40 million quarterback who was signed to take over the team. The running game should open up the passing game for the Jets, which is going to need to be the case if Fields is going to struggle like this. However, it's just one day of camp. It's nothing to be too concerned about. Just because Fields lost this specific practice doesn't mean he's heading in the wrong direction as a whole.
The Minnesota Vikings are set to have their annual night practice on Monday night, and just like last year, they have some news coming right before it's set to begin. This time, it's not quarterback J.J. McCarthy missing practice with an undiagnosed knee injury that ended his season. The Vikings signed tight end Nick Vannett and waived offensive tackle Marcellus Johnson Vannett has been around the block during the course of his nine year career. After being a third-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 2016, the player who was once nicknamed "Baby Gronk," Vannett has played for eight teams. He was most productive in 2018 with the Seahawks, catching 29 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns. In 2024 with the Tennessee Titans, Vannett caught 17 passes for 135 yards and three touchdowns. He's been the number two or three tight end for the majority of his career. Even so, Vannett has started 53 of his 111 career games. This is the second time that the Vikings have added depth at the tight end position this offseason. Right before mandatory minicamp, they added Giovanni Ricci with sixth-round pick Gavin Bartholomew nursing a back injury. He is still on the Physically Unable to Perform list, which is a cause for concern as we move forward in the preseason. Vannett is another veteran to add in a room with multiple rookies who could learn a thing or two. Also, he can eat up some snaps during the course of the preseason to keep both T.J. Hockenson and Josh Oliver off the field. What does this mean for the Vikings and the tight end position? From the onset of the addition, Vannett is a threat to make the roster, as he's a versatile depth piece who can play a multitude of different roles on the offense. It could also spell disaster for Bartholomew, as his back injury could be worse than we realize, especially with Vannett being the second tight end that has been added in as many weeks.
As it turned out, veteran pitcher Nestor Cortes’ time with the Milwaukee Brewers was just a short one. Cortes, who was acquired by the Brewers via a trade with the New York Yankees in December and signed a one-year, $7.6 million contract with the Brewers nearly a month later, has been sent by Milwaukee to the San Diego Padres ahead of last week’s trade deadline. Cortes opens up about trade from Milwaukee Brewers to San Diego The 30-year-old Cortes recently shared how he learned he was on the move to San Diego, which came just minutes before he was to board the team bus for a road trip. “It’s been a little crazy, I was in Milwaukee and flew in last night,” Cortes said on Monday (h/t Marty Caswell of The Sporting Tribune). “But as soon as I got traded, a bunch of people reached out and made me feel like I was really welcomed here. And walking into the clubhouse today, obviously a lot of guys came up to me and presented me to all these places that we have here. It’s amazing for me now. Just happy to be here, happy for the opportunity.” Getting traded wasn’t exactly a surprise for Cortes, and he also seemingly got to an ideal situation with the Padres despite parting ways with a Milwaukee squad that is leading the big leagues in the standings with 67 wins through Sunday. “I was a little surprised. Even though I felt if there was a chance to get out of Milwaukee, it was going to be to a contender and I’m just happy to be here and happy to compete,” added Cortes. “I want to get the ball every five days hopefully and be able to give the best that I can.” Cortes appeared in only two games with the Brewers, as he landed on the 15-day injured list with an elbow flexor strain before getting placed on the 60-day IL.
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