“I don’t think there’s any question in anybody’s mind that I will be in the lineup for Game 1,” he said Tuesday during a Zoom news conference.
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By Game 1 on Friday, Freeman will have had a week since running on his sprained right ankle in NL Championship Series Game 5 against the New York Mets.
Of course, the final lineup decision rests with manager Dave Roberts after discussions with the front office.
The All-Star first baseman missed Games 4 and 6 of the NLCS. Freeman was 3 for 18 against the Mets after hitting .286 in the NL Division Series against San Diego.
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Freeman said he can hit and walk comfortably but his ankle flares up when he takes the first step to run. He’s been receiving hours of treatment for the first sprained ankle of his long career.
“I want to get this thing as calmed down as I possibly can, to give my best self and be ready to go by Game 1,” he said.
Freeman hurt his ankle on Sept. 26 against the Padres while trying to avoid a tag at first base by San Diego’s Luis Arráez and missed the Dodgers’ last three regular-season games.
The 39-year-old superstar and his 20-year-old son played almost 2 1/2 minutes together late in the first half of Bronny’s NBA debut. They are also the first father and son to play in the NBA at the same time, let alone on the same team.
LeBron scored 16 points, while Anthony Davis had 36 points and 16 rebounds in a dominant performance for the Lakers. Rui Hachimura added 18 points.
JJ Redick won his head coaching debut for the Lakers, who hired the 15-year NBA veteran for his first coaching job at any level.
Anthony Edwards scored 27 points for the Timberwolves, who are coming off their best season in 20 years.
Dalton Knecht scored five points in the Lakers’ first-round pick’s debut.
Timberwolves: There will be growing pains in the post-Towns era. Davis ran rampant against Randle and Rudy Gobert, and nobody stepped up to score alongside Edwards.
Lakers: Their largely unchanged roster showed the benefits of continuity, playing disciplined ball on both ends and getting organized defense led by Davis.
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Davis was phenomenal down the stretch, either scoring or assisting on 13 of Los Angeles’ next 15 points after he returned to the game with 7:09 left. LeBron’s 3-pointer put it away.
LeBron officially joined Vince Carter as the only players in NBA history to play in 22 seasons. James is sixth in career games played with 1,493 — not counting his NBA-record 287 playoff games.
Three months on from the ceremony in the Cote d’Azur, she feels “great to be back” renewing her ties with her homeland.
“I’ve been looking forward to this camp for a number of weeks,” Weir said. “It was by far the toughest I’ve had to go through in my career. There were so many ups and downs.
“Looking back, I’ve learned a lot. I do feel grateful for a slight change in perspective coming back.”
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Weir tried to remain as “balanced” and “rational” as she could as she worked her way back to fitness.
“Some days, it felt like this is totally fine, I can totally do this,” she explained. “Other days, there were tough times.
“It’s physically really demanding. There were so many elements to this injury. It is quite a complex surgery.
“Unfortunately, it’s really common, but there’s a lot to it. It definitely wasn’t a simple journey to recovery, but parts of it I enjoyed.
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“I kind of enjoyed that challenge. I’ve been lucky that I had never been injured before. I was proud of the way I dealt with it most of the time. These things happen, it’s part of sport.”
Looking toward the tie with Hungary, Weir believes the 2022 World Cup play-off defeat by Republic of Ireland can “drive us on”.
“I believe in this team, I believe in the squad,” she added. “Everything we worked on has led us to this point.
“We really think and believe and hope that it’s going to be this time.”
Former Barcelona boss Xavi holds discussions with Manchester United, Sevilla are interested in taking Tottenham defender Archie Gray on loan, Chelsea tell teenager Josh Acheampong he will not play again until he signs a new deal.
Former Barcelona boss Xavi has held talks with Manchester United about the possibility of replacing Erik ten Hag as manager. (Mail), external
Chelsea have told 18-year-old England Under-20 defender Josh Acheampong that he will not play for the club at any level again until he signs a new contract. (Athletic – subscription required), external
Tottenham have placed an £80m price tag on 25-year-old Spanish right-back Pedro Porro, who is being tracked by Manchester City. (Football Insider), external
Arsenal Under-18s coach Jack Wilshere, 32, will join Norwich as first team coach this week after the two clubs agreed a compensation fee for the former Gunners midfielder. (Standard), external
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Graham Potter, David Moyes and Gareth Southgate are potential candidates to succeed Oliver Glasner if he is sacked by CrystalPalace. (Guardian), external
Former BorussiaDortmund boss Edin Terzic is a candidate for the WestHam job if the Hammers sack Julen Lopetegui. (Florian Plettenberg), external
Dortmund want to sign a left-back in January with Chelsea’s 27-year-old England international Ben Chilwell and Bournemouth’s Hungary international Milos Kerkez, 20, on their shortlist. (Teamtalk), external
Top players in Europe could refuse to promote the newly-expanded Club World Cup as part of a dispute between player unions and Fifa over the congested football calendar. (Times – subscription required), external
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Everton’s takeover by the Freidkin Group remains on track to be completed by December, but the new owners will not sanction significant January spending because of PSR restrictions. (The i – subscription required), external
Embiid and George will miss Wednesday’s season opener against Milwaukee and could miss more games as the All-Stars expected to try to lead Philadelphia to its first championship since 1983 return from injuries.
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George was set to make his Sixers debut after he left the Los Angeles Clippers and signed a four-year, $212 million contract as a free agent this summer. But the 34-year-old George got a bone bruise when he hyperextended his left knee during a preseason game.
The Sixers did not say Tuesday how many more games George could miss; his return to play will be assessed later in the week.
The Bucks also lost a dose of star power ahead of the game as the NBA opens this week.
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Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers said Tuesday that Bucks forward Khris Middleton also isn’t expected to play in the opener. The three-time All-Star hasn’t had any 5-on-5 work in the preseason as he recovers from offseason surgeries to each of his ankles.
“It’s pretty 100% to 99,” Rivers said of the likelihood that Middleton won’t play.
A nine-time All-Star, George was injured when his knee buckled on a defensive play in the second quarter of a game last week against Atlanta.
George has dealt with injuries for much of his career before he played 76 games last season, the first time he played more than 56 since 2018-19.
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He discussed the bone bruise this week on his “Podcast P with Paul George.” A six-time All-NBA selection, George said his knee was stable with no major damage, nor did it cause any long-term concern over his health.
“My leg literally just got stuck. I don’t even know what else to call it. Just my knee locked up, my leg locked up,” George said on his podcast. “When I went to go push off, all my momentum is going forward and my leg, it just caused it to go inwards. I know I’m thinking of when I seen it immediately I was like, ah, this don’t feel right, this don’t feel right.”
The Sixers’ schedule also includes games Sunday at Indiana and home games Wednesday and Saturday.
“I’m going to be good. I’m going to be good,” George said. “I should be back hopefully sooner than later, but it won’t be a long timetable I would imagine.”
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The Sixers are down a familiar road with Embiid.
He did not play in the preseason because of a sore left knee.
The Sixers said Embiid was “responding well” to his individualized rehab plan and was scheduled to scrimmage this week. Embiid also will miss Friday’s game against Toronto and will be reevaluated this weekend.
“There’s been no setbacks,” coach Nick Nurse told reporters at the 76ers’ complex in New Jersey. “He’s really active. He’s lost some weight. He’s out on the court. Just kind of sticking with our plan of making sure we’re getting into a really, really good place before we play him live.”
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The 30-year-old, who won an Olympic gold medal in Paris with Team USA, signed a $193 million contract ahead of training camp. The 76ers have failed to advance out of the second round of the playoffs since 2001, in large part because Embiid has failed to stay healthy for an entire postseason.
Embiid has never played more than 68 games in a season and was limited to 39 last season in large part because of knee surgery. He tore the meniscus in his left knee on Jan. 30 and had surgery on Feb. 6.
“We’ve got to do whatever it takes to make sure that in the postseason I’m healthy,” Embiid said in September. “It’s whatever it takes to make sure I get to that point and I’m ready to go. Basically, every single year of my career I’ve been hurt in the playoffs. That’s the goal, doing whatever it takes to get there.”
The 76ers finished 31-8 last season season with Embiid — about a 65-win pace — and a woeful 16-27 without him.
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Embiid revealed ahead of training camp that he dropped about 25 to 30 pounds over the summer to stay in better condition for the long grind of the season. That includes not rushing back from any further issues with the knee.
“Until I’m at that point where they feel like I’m ready to go, I’m sure they’re going to hold me back,” Embiid said at the team’s media day. “I believe with the guys that we have, and what I can bring to the table, we have a pretty good chance (at a title).”
He has five All-NBA Team honors, seven consecutive All-Star selections from 2017-24, three All-Defensive Team nods and twice has been the NBA scoring champion.
With George joining the 2023 NBA MVP in Embiid and All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey, the 76ers were expected to boast one of the most formidable trios in the league as they try to put together a nucleus that can compete with the defending champion Boston Celtics.
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Maxey is expected to play after the guard suffered a bruised right thumb in the preseason.
As for the Bucks, Rivers said Middleton’s injury is more of a day-to-day issue and shouldn’t keep him out long. A variety of injuries limited Middleton to 55 regular-season games last year and 33 in 2022-23.
“I’d say if this was a playoff game, he’d probably be playing, or close to it,” Rivers said.
Taurean Prince has been starting in Middleton’s place during the preseason.
Jhon Duran has made a habit of coming off the substitutes bench and scoring for Aston Villa this season.
On Tuesday, the Colombia forward made his first start at Villa Park for 11 months and marked it with his side’s second goal against Bologna in the Champions League.
Duran’s celebrations were cut short when he was immediately replaced by Ollie Watkins, and he showed his displeasure by kicking the back of one of the dugout seats in frustration.
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Unai Emery is not too upset with Duran’s reaction, however.
Duran now has seven goals in all competitions while Watkins has five – two forwards delivering goals as Villa enjoy one of their best starts to a season for years.
“Duran got a goal again and he’s on fire,” former England defender Matt Upson told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Villa have great competition for that centre-forward role, with him and Watkins capable of scoring goals.”
Nick Wright discusses whether Brock Purdy can save the San Francisco 49ers season after losing Brandon Aiyuk for the season due to ACL and MCL injuries.
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