Canelo Alvarez, boxing's top star, and Terence Crawford are in the process of finalizing a deal for a Sept. 13 super middleweight championship fight in Las Vegas, sources told ESPN.
United States international Jack McGlynn as joined the Houston Dynamo on a permanent deal from the Philadelphia Union, the two teams announced on Monday.
Former United States goalkeeper Hope Solo announced on Monday that she will be leading Solo FC into play at The Soccer Tournament from June 4-9 in Cary, North Carolina.
The 2023 AP Defensive Player of the Year and four-time All-Pro issued a public statement on Monday, requesting a trade from the Browns, the organization that took him first overall in the 2017 NFL Draft and watched him grow into one of the league's most feared edge rushers.
Garrett cited the "desire to win" in his statement, implying the Browns are not going to give him the best chance to fulfill his Super Bowl dream ahead of his age-30 season.
"As a kid dreaming of the NFL, all I focused on was the ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl – and that goal fuels me today more than ever. My love for the community of Northeast Ohio and the incredible fanbase of the Cleveland Browns has made this one of the toughest decisions of my life. These past eight years have shaped me into the man that I am today.
"While I’ve loved calling this city my home, my desire to win and compete on the biggest stages won’t allow me to be complacent. The goal was never to go from Cleveland to Canton, it has always been to compete for and win a Super Bowl.
"With that in mind, I have requested to be traded from the Cleveland Browns."
Garrett’s skills on the gridiron go without saying, as he is coming off another double-digit-sack season, making it seven in a row after collecting 14 in 17 games. He has at least 14 sacks in his last four seasons.
Garrett earned his first Defensive Player of the Year nod last season after collecting 14 sacks with 17 tackles for loss, 42 combined tackles, four forced fumbles and 30 quarterback hits over 16 games.
However, despite his personal achievements, the Browns has only played three playoff games in his eight seasons with the franchise. One of them came in 2023, though they fell to the Houston Texans in the Wild Card Round. Before that, the Browns played twice during the 2020 campaign.
Garrett signed a five-year, $125 million extension with the Browns in 2020, and he still has two years left on his deal. It’s why GM Andrew Berry has been solid with his stance that he doesn’t have any intention on trading one of the best players in the league while he’s under Browns control.
"You can put that on the record," Berry told reporters, via NFL.com, adding he wouldn’t even do the deal for two first-round picks.
After making that statement, though, Garrett made his own, which could put pressure on the organization.
The Browns are coming off a horrendous 3-14 season, where quarterback Deshaun Watson, who struggled mightily, tore his Achilles to end his season prematurely. Then, he underwent surgery again in his right Achilles in January, putting into question whether he can be ready for the start of the 2025 season.
Cleveland owns the No. 2 overall pick, where Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter could be an option as the clear top defensive end in the class.
The elder Doncic made an appearance with Arena Sport Slovenija, where he called the Mavericks’ treatment of Luka "very unfair," saying that the trade "hurts me personally."
"I understand there comes a moment when you disagree with a certain philosophy," Sasa said in Slovenian, which was translated by Arena Sport Slovenija. "You don’t like this or that player, all good, I get it. But I think that exactly this secrecy, or should I say from some individuals, maybe even hypocrisy, this hurts me personally.
"Because I think that Luka absolutely doesn’t deserve this. Giving the fact that at least, as I know, sacrificed himself enormously and even all the stories now that someone is releasing that he wants to apologize for the things that they’re doing. I feel like this is very unfair from some individuals because I know that Luka respected Dallas a lot. He respected the whole city, helped children."
Some of the "unfair" treatment Sasa is discussing could revolve around a report from ESPN that said the Mavericks had concerns about Doncic’s conditioning, which could impede the 25-year-old reaching his full potential.
And with the trade, Luka no longer qualifies for a $323 million supermax extension, though the Lakers could give him a $230 million extension.
Luka has not seen an NBA floor since Christmas, as he’s been dealing with a strained left calf he suffered on the holiday. The league leader in points per game last season was averaging 28.1 points before the injury.
The trade, though, was shocking even with Lakers star Anthony Davis being involved in the package because of Luka’s young age, coupled with his accomplishments, including leading a Mavericks team to the NBA Finals last season. He is a five-time All-Star and won Western Conference Finals MVP during that title run last year, which ultimately fell short to the Boston Celtics.
Sasa discussed those conditioning concerns, dismissing them after seeing what his son did during the 2023-24 season.
"It wasn’t even a problem last year since, I am saying again, one individual said he’s not fit enough," Sasa explained. "That he played, I don’t know, 100 games, practically 40 minutes with two or three players constantly on him. That he was beaten, and you say such things about him. I feel that this is very unfair from certain individuals. You traded him, stand by your actions but don’t look for excuses or alibis, that’s it."
While GM Nico Harrison explained his decision after the trade, which was at first believed to be false, became official, the team faced backlash from its fan base for sending off the face of the franchise.
A group of fans was even spotted having a symbolic funeral outside American Airlines Center on Sunday, with a baby blue casket being brought in and draped with Doncic jerseys, fan art, T-shirts and more.
Harrison’s explanation was that the trade was "going to make us better," while also selling that the move "sets us up to win not only now, but in the future."
Dallas is currently placed ninth in the Western Conference with a 26-24 record after being blown out by the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday, 144-101. Davis, who wasn’t with the team yet, and Kyrie Irving were not on the floor for the Mavericks.
Kirill Marchenko, who leads the Blue Jackets with 21 goals, reportedly suffered a broken jaw after he was hit in the face by a stray puck while on the bench Sunday.
