The Golden State Warriors will almost certainly want Klay Thompson to take less money from them next summer than he could earn on the open market, and it seems clear that the sharpshooter is very much open to the idea of a hometown discount.Thompson’s father, former NBA star Mychal Thompson, spoke with Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday about his son’s impending free agency. The elder Thompson said he has complete confidence that Klay will remain with the Warriors for years to come.“Oh yeah, you can mark it down,” Mychal Thompson said. “Klay’s going to retire in the Warriors’ uniform. He’s going to play at Chase Center (the Warriors’ new arena, opening in 2019), and he’s not going to be at Chase Center as a visiting player, he’s going to be a Warrior for the next seven or eight years.”Even with the Warriors continuously adding talent and less shots to go around, Thompson has consistently averaged 20 or more points per game for the past four seasons. He’s one of the best shooting guards in t

Josh Gordon announced over the weekend that he has rejoined the Cleveland Browns after leaving as part of his ongoing treatment program, which gives the star wide receiver three weeks to prepare for the start of the regular season. However, he is not a lock to play in Week 1.During a conference call with reporters on Saturday, Browns head coach Hue Jackson would not commit to Gordon being ready for the start of the regular season.“There’s a chance,” Jackson said, via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “Obviously, we’re just going to take it one step at a time. His focus is going to be on meetings and conditioning, and then we’ll just kind of go from there. Hopefully, we can get him up and running by the first game.”Jackson’s remarks were similar to the ones made by Browns GM John Dorsey, who said Gordon will ease back in and resume all football activities when “deemed appropriate.”The fact that Gordon has returned several weeks before the start of the season is certainly a good sign, as there was no timetable f

There were more than a few people who thought the Boston Red Sox were making a mistake when they signed J.D. Martinez last winter, and Boston radio host Tony Massarotti may have been the most outspoken about it. The official Twitter account of Major League Baseball does not want him to forget it.Martinez hit his MLB-leading 38th home run of the season in Boston’s 5-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday. The person who runs MLB’s Twitter account capitalized on the opportunity to taunt Massarotti over it. To his credit, Mazz was a good sport. For those of you who don’t get the reference, Michael Felger is Massarotti’s co-host on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Felger and Mazz Show” in Boston. Massarotti ripped the Red Sox on the air repeatedly before the season over the Martinez signing, and he also sent several tweets bashing the team. Martinez’s 106 RBI are 11 more than any player in baseball, and his .333 batting average is second in the majors behind only teammate Mookie Betts. He’s a legitimate MVP and Triple C

Paxton Lynch’s brutal summer continues, and he’s not hiding his emotions about it.Addressing reporters after going just 5-of-11 for 39 yards in Saturday’s preseason loss to the Chicago Bears, the Denver Broncos' quarterback admitted that his recent demotion to the third string was “tough” and “really upset[ting].” Here is what he said, per Ryan O’Halloran of the Denver Post: Lynch’s performance this weekend comes after he went 6-of-11 for 24 yards with an interception in last week’s preseason opener against the Minnesota Vikings. He has also taken three total sacks in the two games and has heard boos from fans both times out.The 24-year-old has now been leapfrogged by former Mr. Irrelevant Chad Kelly as Case Keenum’s backup and seems to be losing confidence with each passing snap. Lynch also took some heat last season for his shows of emotion, but it looks like this season may be even more of an uphill battle for him.

Josh Gordon is back. The wideout announced Saturday morning that he’d be returning to the Browns. Gordon had been absent from training camp and the Browns’ first two preseason games as he worked on his mental and physical health. “I would like to thank the NFL, NFLPA, the entire Cleveland Browns organization, the University of Florida, and my friend and business manager Michael Johnson Jr for playing such pivotal roles during this process,” Gordon said. “This has by no means been an easy road and I’m extremely grateful to have all of you in my life.” As I humbly return to being a member of this team with an opportunity to get back to playing this game I love, I realize in order for me to reach my full potential my primary focus must remain on my sobriety and mental well-being.” Gordon had announced back in June that he wouldn’t be attending the early part of preseason as he focused on his treatment program. However, there wasn’t a definitive return date, and the team subsequently placed the receiver on the no

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz continues to trend in the right direction as he prepares for the 2018 NFL season.Wentz is still not likely to play in a single preseason game this year, but he was cleared to resume 11-on-11 team activities when practice resumes on Sunday, ESPN.com's Chris Mortensen reported.This is an encouraging development. The Eagles had been cautious with Wentz this summer as they continue to make it clear that his recovery is about getting ready to be the quarterback for the next decade-plus in Philly, rather than the quarterback for Week 1 this season.Now that he’s been cleared for contact, the team must feel that his knee is able to withstand pretty much anything he’d normally see on the gridiron on any given Sunday.Meanwhile, backup Nick Foles also got good news on Friday when tests showed no significant injury to his shoulder, which he injured during Thursday night’s game against the New England Patriots.If Foles is healthy, then we wouldn’t be surprised if he does open t

The Dallas Cowboys must be holding their collective breath as the team awaits more information about the injury suffered by All-Pro guard Zack Martin on Saturday night.Martin ended up on the turf after pulling on a run play. He remained down for a while with trainers around him and limped off the field. It wasn’t long afterward that Dallas announced Martin would not return with a knee injury.Before Saturday’s preseason game was over, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Martin would be getting an MRI on his knee Sunday morning to determine the extent of the injury.In his first four years as a pro, Martin has made either First- or Second-team All-Pro every year. He recently received a massive contract extension with the Cowboys that made him the highest-paid guard in NFL history.

Jose Altuve is just about set to return to the Houston Astros following a knee injury, but not before doing something for the first time.Altuve is headed out to Triple-A Fresno on a rehab assignment that could see him back in the Houston lineup as early as next week. This will be the first Triple-A appearance of Altuve’s career. He went directly from Double-A Corpus Christi to the majors in 2011, and he has never looked back since. Add in the fact that this is the first time in his big league career that Altuve has landed on the disabled list and you have a lot of firsts — and not just for Altuve himself, either.

The Boston Red Sox got more ominous news on ace left-hander Chris Sale on Saturday.The Red Sox placed Sale on the disabled list a day before his scheduled start, citing a recurrence of left shoulder inflammation. Sale was placed on the disabled list abruptly on July 31 with the same shoulder issue. He spent the minimum time required on the DL and returned to start on Aug. 12, where he looked perfectly fine, striking out 12 Baltimore Orioles and allowing just one hit over five innings. Obviously, his problems weren’t over, and it will be worrisome that this appears to be a recurring issue with the postseason looming in a little over a month.

Chargers tight end Hunter Henry is now three months removed from undergoing surgery for a torn ACL, and there is reportedly a “glimmer of hope” the third-year pro could return during the 2018 campaign, according to Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. Most ACL injuries require a minimum nine-month recover period, a timeline which should have ruled out Henry for the regular season. But Henry has been moving well during Los Angeles’ training camp, per Williams, who adds Henry “doesn’t look like someone who believes [his] season is over.”The Chargers will almost surely place Henry on injured reserve during roster cutdowns in September, but there’s a chance he could be designated as an IR/return player. (A player with that designation must be carried through to his club’s respective initial 53-man roster before being moved to IR.) Henry would be able to play after missing Los Angeles’ first eight games, meaning he could return on November 11, just shy of six months after his ACL surgery.At that point, the Chargers’ team

Wednesday night, Miami Marlins pitcher José Ureña hit Atlanta’ Ronald Acuña Jr. with a pitch. It wasn’t just any pitch, however. Ureña went after him with his first pitch of the game — a 97.5 MPH fastball. Unfortunately (but definitely intentionally), it hit Acuña near his elbow. Thankfully, the 20-year-old Braves outfielder would find himself back in the lineup the next day. But he did have to leave the game on Wednesday night.None of this changes the fact that what Ureña did was and is bad. It’s really quite that simple. Pitchers need to stop throwing at people intentionally. Teams need to suck it up when their opponent shows emotion. It’s not like the opposing player is trying to show anybody up. They’re just happy that they did their job well! This is a (redacted) game, after all. And yet, MLB does nothing to discourage this type of nonsense. Instead, they gave Ureña a six-game suspension — which he is appealing anyway. In other words, Ureña will miss one start… and that’s IF he loses his appeal.But don’t

Dez Bryant left Cleveland without a deal, and according to a new report, he won’t be getting one anytime soon.According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, the Browns have put wide receiver Dez Bryant on the back burner after the return of Josh Gordon to training camp, and do not intend to offer Bryant a deal anytime soon.Bryant and the Browns did not come close to a deal during his visit, and while they will continue to monitor the situation, it appears unlikely that he will play for them. He would prefer a one-year deal with a contender to rebuild his value.Bryant seemed ready to talk numbers when he was in town, but nothing came of it. It’s not clear where he goes from here, as the Browns have been the only team consistently linked with him in recent weeks.

It’s still only preseason, but it’s safe to say nobody is entirely sure what is a penalty and what isn’t in the NFL anymore.During the fourth quarter of Saturday’s preseason game, Minnesota Vikings linebacker Antwione Williams appeared to deliver a routine sack to Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Cody Kessler. Imagine the surprise, then, when Williams was flagged for a personal foul for roughing the passer on this play. Everything about this looks like a clean football play, but referee Shawn Hochuli — son of Ed — determined that Williams was guilty of “landing with his body weight.”It’s worth noting that it’s still preseason and Hochuli is a rookie referee, but if these sorts of calls carry over into the regular season, we’re going to see a lot of confused players and fans. The new helmet rule is already going to be confusing and controversial enough without this sort of thing happening.

This NFL preseason has fans oozing with excitement as September approaches. And it is safe to say some NFL franchises are creating more buzz and excitement than others.Teams coming off of a productive 2017 campaign might just be a little more fun to follow than clubs who look to struggle this fall. Personalities and talent come into play as well when assessing which NFL teams generate the most enthusiasm.Sadly, some franchise has to rest at the bottom of the heap as we rank each NFL team based on its excitement factor.32. Buffalo BillsThe Bills aren’t exactly generating a high level of thrills with the league’s worst quarterback roster, for starters. Rookie Josh Allen will eventually help this franchise become more successful, but that is not happening tomorrow. Running back LeSean McCoy cannot keep shouldering the load forever. This is provided that Shady will be on the field all season (more on that here). It is early to speculate, but this hum-drum squad looks to be nowhere near to repeating last year’s po

Blake Bortles had a pretty nice season in 2017 and really stepped up his game during the playoffs, but on Saturday he was back to his old tricks with a brutal interception.During the first quarter, Bortles threw said interception right to safety Harrison Smith, who is only the best in the business. He never saw Smith and threw the ball right between the numbers. It was an extremely ugly play by the veteran quarterback and former No. 3 overall pick, who actually got lucky on another pass that was NOT intercepted. Twitter had some reactions, to nobody’s surprise. — Keith Cullinane (@Keith_Cullinane) August 18, 2018 — Matt (@Matt__Cota) August 18, 2018 Yep. Football is back, folks. And Blake Bortles is still Blake Bortles.

Per a report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Nationals have placed a number of players on revocable trade waivers, including outfielder Bryce Harper and second baseman Daniel Murphy.Of course, the mere fact that both players were placed on waivers doesn’t mean anything in and of itself. As Rosenthal himself notes, virtually every player in MLB will be placed on trade waivers at some point in August, so there’s no way to gauge the Nats’ intentions with Harper and Murphy at this time. There’s little reason not to put these players through trade waivers, actually, since there’s no risk involved on the move. If they clear, the Nationals have the ability to trade either one at any point between now and August 31st. If one is claimed, the club can either choose to work out a deal with the claiming team or simply pull the player back off waivers.But while the move itself doesn’t bear much in the way of consequences, the responses hereafter will certainly merit close attention, particularly in regards to Harp

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz is ramping up his practice involvement, but he won’t be taking the field this preseason.According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen, Wentz will resume 11-on-11 work at practice on Sunday, a good sign as he returns from his significant knee injury last season. He will not feature at all in the preseason, but that does not necessarily mean he won’t be good to go for Week 1 of the regular year. Wentz had done some 11-on-11 at the start of camp, but had been eased off it for a while. The fact that he’s back to it is a good sign that he’s back at them with some time to spare before the season starts. As he has said, it’s going to be a tight call whether he can start the opener, but he looks to be on track.

The Washington Nationals placed many players on revocable trade waivers this week, including star Bryce Harper, according to a report.The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal shared the news, noting that teams placing players on revocable waivers at this point in the year is extremely common. Although the “trade deadline” in MLB passed, trades can still be made. The difference is the previous deadline is for non-waiver trades. Now players can either be claimed by a team off waivers, at which point a trade could be made. Or if the player passes through waivers going unclaimed, the team can then trade the player anywhere. A player who is claimed off waivers can also be revoked so that he remains with his original team.Rosenthal isn’t sure why Harper was placed on waivers but speculates that it’s to give the Nats more options. Even though the Nats have said that Harper isn’t going anywhere, this seems to show at least some level of willingness to trade him.

Earlier this summer, the Minnesota Vikings lost a beloved member of their team when offensive line coach Tony Sparano passed away.On Saturday ahead of their second preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the team honored Sparano with a tremendous ceremony that began with a moment of silence. Before the ceremony, the Vikings presented a painting to the Sparano family, which was in attendance for Saturday’s game. Until his untimely passing, Sparano was one of the most beloved coaches in the league.He began his career as an offensive quality control coach with the Cleveland Browns back in 1999, spent seasons with the Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins (where he became a head coach from 2008-11), New York Jets, Oakland Raiders and San Francisco 49ers before signing with Minnesota in 2016.Sparano is survived by his wive, Jeanette, his sons Anthony Michael (an assistant with the Jaguars) and Andrew (an offensive line coach at Chabot College), and daughter Ryan Leigh.

The New York Yankees honored their 1998 World Series team on Saturday, but there was one rather conspicuous absence to the festivities.Joe Girardi, who was a backup catcher on the 1998 team and the manager from 2008-2017, was invited to the ceremony but declined the invitation, according to Steven Marcus of Newsday. This will probably raise some eyebrows. Girardi was not brought back by the Yankees after making the ALCS last year, and the manager made it clear that the decision was out of his hands. While he has said he still roots for the players, it’s not conceivable to think that he’s still unhappy about not being brought back by the front office.There is no obvious reason why Girardi couldn’t have made the ceremony if he wanted to, as he primarily serves as a studio analyst at MLB Network, which is based near New York. It’s an interesting subplot.