EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — Austin Reaves has been upgraded to questionable for Game 3 of the Los Angeles Lakers‘ first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets.

The Lakers made the designation on their high-scoring guard Thursday while the team flew to Houston. Los Angeles has a surprising 2-0 series lead heading into Game 3 on Friday night despite playing without Luka Doncic and Reaves, its top two scorers.

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Reaves hasn’t played since he strained his oblique muscles and Doncic strained his hamstring in a game at Oklahoma City on April 2, but Reaves returned to on-court basketball activities over the past few days. Before the Lakers’ flight, coach JJ Redick said he had no update on the schedule for his injured starters’ return to play.

Reaves averaged 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds during an impressive regular season for the Lakers, although he played in only 51 games due to two lengthy injury absences. In his fifth season with Los Angeles, the former undrafted free agent cemented his status as a prolific secondary scorer and dependable offensive facilitator while the Lakers won 53 games and the Pacific Division.

But Reaves and NBA scoring champion Doncic were both injured during the Lakers’ blowout loss to the Thunder three weeks ago.

Doncic is still out for Game 3, but Redick said earlier this week that the Slovenian superstar is expected to begin initial on-court work soon. The Lakers haven’t publicly speculated on the date of either guard’s return.

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After losing three straight games following the injuries, the Lakers have regrouped and won five in a row. Los Angeles stunned the NBA by claiming the first two games of its first-round series at home over the Rockets, who were perceived as the strong favorites in the series due to the Lakers’ injury problems.

Although 41-year-old LeBron James is leading the way, Luke Kennard and Marcus Smart also have stepped up impressively in the absence of the Lakers’ starting backcourt. Kennard scored 27 points in Game 1 and 23 in Game 2, and Smart scored 25 points with five 3-pointers in Game 2 while leading Los Angeles’ impressive defensive effort against Kevin Durant, who managed only three points after halftime.

Reaves will be eligible for a big new contract this summer if he declines his option for next season, as expected. Both Reaves and team officials have said they believe the guard will remain with the Lakers, his favorite team since childhood.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

The golf swing is a unique motion, but certain components do have similarities to motions from other sports. One such example is a baseball throwing motion.

When you throw a baseball, you load into your trail side, shift your weight forward as you finish your coil and then sling your arm around your body, much like the motion in a properly sequenced golf swing. You can also use the baseball throwing motion as a model for how the structure of your trail arm should look at the top of the backswing.

If you want to feel the proper position for your trail arm at the top of the backswing, try thinking of throwing a baseball. Take your arm back like you would to start your throwing motion, and then pause when you get to the top.

You should notice that it looks quite similar to the position your trail arm is in at the top of the backswing.

“When your trail arm works back and up and gets to the top of the backswing, the arm is in the correct throwing position,” says GOLF Top 100 Teacher Krista Dunton. “If I were throwing a ball overhand, my trail arm [throwing arm] is going to move downward towards the ball and then release around the body.”

Now, from the top of the backswing, your arm will work more down toward the ball and around your body, so the comparison is not exactly apples to apples, but you can see how the movements have certain similarities.

The release of your trail hand and wrist is also similar to the throwing motion. In both of them, you want your wrists to be somewhat soft in order to create that whip-like motion to generate maximal power.

“Feel like the trail arm works back and sets the club,” Dunton says. “Then on the downswing, feel that trail arm creating that same motion sending the clubhead working downward and around the body. If you keep the trail arm working down and around like you are throwing a ball to the left, that delivers the center of the clubface right down into the back of the ball.”

If you’re someone with a background in baseball — or any throwing sport — try incorporating this feel into your golf swing. Those baseball skills may end up helping your golf game, too.

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Manchester United could be close to finally saying goodbye for good to one of their biggest-ever transfers this summer

Jadon Sancho’s return to Borussia Dortmund has reportedly been given the green light by manager Niko Kovac which would spell the end of his torrid Manchester United career.

The winger, who is currently on loan at Aston Villa, hasn’t played for United since their 2024 Community Shield defeat to Manchester City and has failed to match expectations at Old Trafford since his £73million arrival in 2021.

Likely to end his United career with just 12 goals and six assists in 83 games across all competitions, the 26-year-old’s contract is set to expire this summer, with the club taking a colossal loss on a player who was once their fourth-biggest transfer ever. United do, though, have the option to extend Sancho’s deal by 12 more months.

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Despite the impressiveness of Aston Villa’s season as Unai Emery’s side look set to clinch Champions League football while being in the semi-finals of the Europa League, Sancho has played a bit-part role in their success.

Sancho has scored just one goal and contributed three assists in 33 games while going goalless in the Premier League, meaning he’s netted just three goals in England’s top-flight in the past three years.

Amid his uncertain future, Sky Sports Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg has claimed that Sancho is set for a third stint at Dortmund with the ex-England ace agreeing to a return to Germany – seemingly on a free transfer.

Plettenberg reports that Sancho’s agreement has come despite fielding different offers and Dortmund boss Niko Kovac has already given his approval for the winger’s arrival. However, he did say the final decision to bring Sancho back to the Bundesliga rests with sporting director Ole Book and CEO Lars Ricken.

Ricken – who spent the entirety of his 15-year playing career with Dortmund – already confirmed the club’s interest in Sancho when speaking to Sport Bild. The executive recently revealed: “We are currently looking at a lot of players and analysing them. We check whether they can make us better. We are doing the same with Jadon.

“Of course, we are looking for an offensive player who brings quality, can help us immediately, and doesn’t require an unrealistic transfer fee. In defense, Niklas Süle is leaving us, and Emre Can will be out for a while. So we are thinking about that area as well.”

With 53 goals and 67 assists in 158 appearances for Dortmund in his two stints, Sancho’s best moments of his career came when wearing the black and yellow and was even told to represent the club again by former team-mate Marco Reus.

The ex-Germany international left Dortmund in 2024 after 12 years to sign for LA Galaxy and advised his former team-mate to reignite his career at the club while waxing lyrical about his footballing talent.

Speaking to Sport Bild, the 36-year-old said: “My main advice to Jadon is to look for a place where he feels at home again and can rediscover his form. And if that’s at BVB, then it would be good for both him and Dortmund! I have rarely played alongside a player who made such good decisions instinctively and in tight situations.”

Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package

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Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.

Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside Formula 1, darts and golf.

Former Nigeria international Duke Udi has advised Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle to leave out Stanley Nwabali from the squad for the upcoming Unity Cup and June friendly matches.

Nwabali impressed at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, where he kept three clean sheets in six games and helped Nigeria secure third place. The 29-year-old also saved penalties against Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush during the competition.

However, after the tournament, Nwabali delayed his move until the January transfer window closed before leaving Chippa United, a decision that surprised many.

Chelle did not include the former NPFL-winning goalkeeper in his last squad. Instead, Maduka Okoye, Francis Uzoho, and Adebayo Adeleye were selected and featured in the March friendlies against Jordan and Iran.

Speaking ahead of the Unity Cup in London, Udi said players without clubs should not be picked for the national team. He urged Nigeria to follow the example of countries like England and Senegal, where selections are based strictly on form and performance.

According to Udi, every player must earn a place in the team through consistent displays at club level. He stressed that the national team is not a place for players to regain form, adding that while Nwabali is a good goalkeeper, his current lack of a club should count against him.

Meanwhile, Kaizer Chiefs and Simba SC are reportedly interested in signing the Super Eagles goalkeeper, but no deal has been completed yet.

David Benavidez challenges for Gilberto Ramirez’s unified cruiserweight crown next weekend and should he pass that test, there is only one man on the mind of ‘The Mexican Monster’.

Benavidez has established himself as one of the most fan-friendly fighters in the sport, not only through his enthralling fight style but also because of his mentality to take on all comers and accept the most arduous challenges.

Having ruled at both super-middleweight and light-heavyweight, the reigning WBC 175lb champion is now stepping up to cruiserweight, hoping to hand ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez a second career defeat, in what will be the titleholder’s 50th career outing.

The only other man to have defeated Ramirez is unified light-heavyweight ruler, Dmitry Bivol, and in an interview with Ariel Helwani, Benavidez made it clear that he intends to move back down to light-heavyweight and take on the Russian next.

“I don’t want to make it seem like he is scared or nothing, but he knows what it is when it comes to David Benavidez. He has seen me up close and personal and I have seen him up close and personal, as well.

“He is a great fighter, we have had some great sparring sessions but he knows I am not coming to play. He knows that, when David Benavidez steps in that ring, all of those belts are leaving with David Benavidez.

“I think that he knows the dangers and the severity of this fight and that is why he took a tune-up fight first. I respect Dmitry Bivol, he is a great fighter, but he is definitely going to have to come see me after this fight.”

Whilst Benavidez fights next weekend, Bivol makes a mandatory defence of his titles against Germany’s Michael Eifert on Saturday, May 23, in what will be his first fight on home soil since 2021.

The Grand Finals of the Free Fire Bangladesh Pro League (FFBPL) Season 2 are scheduled for April 24, 2026, where the top 12 teams from the Knockout Stage will compete in a Champion Rush format. The top six teams from the overall rankings will progress to the World Series (FFWS) 2026 Bangladesh Spring. The FFBPL event boasts a total prize pool of 8,100 US dollars.

The Knockout Stage of the Free Fire Bangladesh Pro League was held from April 20 to 22, 2026. A total of 18 teams battled across three days in 12 matches each. The top 12 teams moved to the Grand Finals, while the remaining six were eliminated from the FFBPL S2.

Qualified teams for Free Fire Pro League Bangladesh S2 Finals

Here are the 12 finalists:

1. Team 2XD
2. Red Hawks
3. Enternal Dominators
4. Extreme Ex
5. The Goat
6. Reflex United
7. Straw Hats Esports
8. Team Unionized
9. Max Gang
10. Team Electro
11. Flame Esports
12. Team Infinity

Prize pool distribution

All 18 teams that participated in the Knockout Stage are entitled to a share of the total prize pool in the FFBPL S2, with the bottom six receiving 122 US dollars each. Here is the prize pool distribution:

• 1st Place – 2,444 US dollars
• 2nd Place – 1,222 US dollars
• 3rd Place – 814 US dollars
• 4th Place – 488 US dollars
• 5th Place – 448 US dollars
• 6th Place – 448 US dollars
• 7th Place – 366 US dollars
• 8th Place – 366 US dollars
• 9th Place – 244 US dollars
• 10th Place – 244 US dollars
• 11th Place – 162 US dollars
• 12th Place – 162 US dollars
• 13th Place – 122 US dollars – Neo Flash
• 14th Place – 122 US dollars – VEXIS
• 15th Place – 122 US dollars – Bangladesh Top 1
• 16th Place – 122 US dollars – From The Future
• 17th Place – 122 US dollars – Shadow X Phantoms
• 18th Place – 122 US dollars – GE Esports

How to watch

The official YouTube channel of Free Fire Esports Bangladesh will broadcast all matches of the finale live from 15:00 BST onwards.

Team 2XD had a brilliant run in the Knockout Stage of the Free Fire Bangladesh Pro League. The squad ranked first after playing consistently well across 12 games.

Defending champion Red Hawks placed second in the previous stage. The club has been performing well in regional competitions in the past few years, and recently earned third place in the Ramadan Cup 2026.

Enternal Dominators and Extreme Ex were third and fourth, respectively, in the Knockout Stage. Team Goat and Reflex United also did well in their last six matches of the stage.

Meanwhile, Straw Hats and Unionized had an average run in the Knockout Stage. Flame and Team Infinity ranked 11th and 12th, respectively, and entered the Grand Finals of this Free Fire contest.