5:09 PM ET TEMPE, Ariz. — DeAndre Hopkins‘ game-winning Hail Mary touchdown Sunday didn’t just help the Arizona Cardinals beat the Buffalo Bills, move into a tie for first place in the NFC West and temporarily own the third seed in the entire NFC. It also helped bump Hopkins’ Madden rating jump from 98 to
7:46 PM GMT Top-ranked England and France have been drawn in the same pool for next year’s women’s Rugby World Cup, while hosts New Zealand were drawn with trans-Tasman neighbours Australia at a ceremony in Auckland on Friday. Third-ranked Canada and inaugural champions the United States will be in Pool B for the 12-team tournament
1:19 PM ET Editor’s note: This has been updated with Thursday’s news that Conor McGregor has signed his bout agreement to face Dustin Poirier on Jan. 23. UFC superstar Conor McGregor will return to the Octagon and face Dustin Poirier as the main event of UFC 257 on Jan. 23. The site has not yet
6:50 PM GMT Georgia coach Levan Maisashvili has named a new half-back pairing to face Wales in their Autumn Nations Cup fixture in Llanelli on Saturday in a major change to the side that was trounced 40-0 by England last weekend. The experienced Vasil Lobzhanidze comes in at scrumhalf to partner Tedo Abzhandadze in the
4:40 PM ET The Phoenix Suns are declining the $5.2 million team option on Frank Kaminsky‘s contract, making him an unrestricted free agent, a source tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Kaminsky averaged 9.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 39 games last season, his first with the Suns. He has career averages of 9.8 points,
2:58 PM ET Houston Rockets guard Austin Rivers has decided to opt out of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent, a source told The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears. After four years with the LA Clippers, Rivers spent short stints with the Wizards and Suns before finding a home with the Rockets. Rivers, 28,
4:45 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Ready or not, the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers will be playing preseason games in less than a month. That means L.A.’s soon-to-be 36-year-old superstar, LeBron James, will be gearing up for his 18th season when it seems like his 17th season just ended, with a title in the
2:00 PM ET The New York Knicks created over $40 million in salary-cap space Thursday by parting ways with six veteran players. The Knicks announced that they waived forward Taj Gibson and guards Elfrid Payton and Wayne Ellington and declined the $15.75 million team option on forward Bobby Portis‘ contract. Gibson was set to make
1:47 PM ET Golden State Warriors star guard Klay Thompson has suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon tear, a source told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Thompson suffered a right leg injury during a workout Wednesday in Southern California, the team announced. He underwent an MRI on Thursday morning. Thompson was playing with several NBA players in Los
5:54 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN Gordon Hayward opted out of his $34.2 million contract with the Boston Celtics for the 2020-21 season Thursday afternoon, making him an unrestricted free agent beginning at 6 p.m. Friday, league sources tell ESPN. Hayward, who averaged 17.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 52 games for the Celtics