Inside the downfall of the Nets' Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving era  —  Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving chose the Nets.  Not the other way around.  —  It's an important note to remember as we unpack the end of a not-quite era of championship contention in Brooklyn: The superstars chose to be here.

Lakers trade Russell Westbrook, acquire D'Angelo Russell, 2 others in 3-team deal  —  The Lakers alter their roster significantly in a trade with Utah and Minnesota that also brings guard Malik Beasley and forward Jarred Vanderbilt to L.A., addressing some of the shooting issues that have plagued the team all season

Recapping the Chicago Bulls: Poor 3-point shooting — again — leads to a 116-105 loss to the Brooklyn Nets  —  NEW YORK — Hours after executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas insisted that a consistent roster is still the answer, the Chicago Bulls on Thursday lost to the Brooklyn Nets 116-105.

Hall of Fame voters get it right — Zach Thomas is going to Canton  —  One final misdirection play was run at Zach Thomas in his career.  His mom, Bobby, took him to lunch.  That allowed family and friends to sneak into his Hillsboro Beach home and for his old Miami Dolphins coach …

NFL Network pulls Michael Irvin from Super Bowl-week appearances after woman's complaint  —  The former Cowboys wide receiver said he engaged in no physical contact with the woman beyond a handshake.  —  Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin will not make any of his scheduled …

Sources: Padres' Yu Darvish gets 6-year, $108M extension  —  Right-hander Yu Darvish and the San Diego Padres are in agreement on a six-year, $108 million contract extension, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan on Thursday.  —  The deal, which contains a full no-trade provision …

Angels owner Arte Moreno changed his mind and decided not to sell the Angels, but there's no mistaking Moreno's intention when it comes to his two-way superstar.  —  PALM BEACH, Fla. — Angels owner Arte Moreno changed his mind and decided not to sell the Angels, but there's no mistaking Moreno's intention …

SMU, rumored Pac-12 expansion candidate, keeps commissioner's visit under the radar  —  George Kliavkoff visited campus and attended a men's basketball game at Moody Coliseum as the Pac-12 seeks schools to replace USC and UCLA.  —  UNIVERSITY PARK — If SMU had its way …

Lakers' LeBron James breaks Kareem's NBA career scoring record  —  LOS ANGELES — Pass first?  Not this night.  —  Not with nearly 20,000 eyes watching him in a packed, breathless Crypto.com Arena, and millions more watching at home.  They wanted LeBron James to shoot - clapped their hands and raised their voices.

A beloved San Jose statue vanished.  It's not the first time it's been stolen.  —  Who took the figurine of Indian ruler Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj from Guadalupe River Park?  —  A 440-pound metal statue has disappeared from Guadalupe River Park, dismaying community members who treasure …

Classic rosters packed with international talent  —  It's nearly here.  After a six-year wait, the World Baseball Classic has returned, and it's bigger than ever.  That's not hyperbole, either: The tournament field has been expanded to 20 teams, with three first-time participants in Great Britain …

2023 National League prospect rankings for every team  —  Last week, I ranked the top 100 MLB prospects and all 30 MLB farm systems heading into the 2023 season.  Now it's time to go deeper with my team-by-team rankings, starting with the National League followed by the American League lists later this week.

Miami Heat will trade Kyle Lowry — the only question is if it happens by Thursday  —  MIAMI — Is it just me, or don't you wish the Miami Heat would go ahead and trade Kyle Lowry?  —  Their idea to trade him isn't some state secret.  It's the cold, hard and increasingly welcome truth of their disappointing marriage.