Sports
Suns hope Bradley Beal's return to lineup provides boost versus Grizzlies
Feb 22, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Coby White (0) defends Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal (3) during the first quarter at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images The Phoenix Suns enter Tuesday’s game against the host Memphis Grizzlies hoping to reverse a recent slump and keep their playoff hopes alive.
The Suns have lost eight of their last 10 games, including Sunday’s 127-109 setback to the Toronto Raptors.
“We’ve got to find ways to get wins,” Phoenix coach Mike Budenholzer said.
Budenholzer hopes Bradley Beal’s recent return to the starting lineup will be a catalyst. Beal was benched Jan. 6 against Philadelphia but was re-inserted into the starting five Saturday at Chicago. Beal had 25 points, including a key 3-pointer late in the contest, to help the Suns to a 121-117 victory.
Beal playing with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker appears to be the Suns’ strongest option, according to Budenholzer.
“If we can get the right rhythm and find the right opportunities offensively and have all three of those guys be aggressive and attacking, I think that’s potentially when we can be at our best,” Budenholzer said.
Beal returned to the starting lineup in favor over Tyus Jones. In Sunday’s loss to Toronto, Beal scored 30 points in a team-high 41 minutes.
Durant said in order to reverse the team’s recent struggles, there will have to be some improvements defensively. He said the Suns have made matters difficult because they have not been successful at preventing scoring runs.
“That’s usually how the game goes,” Durant said. “(Opponents) go off and just go on a flurry against us. Sometimes it’s hard to bounce back when teams score a lot of points in a row. I’ve got to bring it if I want us to win.”
Durant managed only 15 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the field against Toronto. He missed each of his five 3-point tries.
Memphis also has encountered a rough stretch. The Grizzlies have dropped three of their past four, including Sunday’s 129-123 road loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The only win during the past four games came Friday at Orlando, but it required an 11-1 run to finish the game.
While Memphis never let Sunday’s game against one of the NBA’s top teams get out of hand, the Grizzlies were undone by allowing 22 offensive rebounds. Those offensive rebounds led to 31 points by the Cavaliers.
“It doomed us,” Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said.
The tendency to allow an inordinate number of offensive rebounds has been an issue this season, and Jenkins said it must be addressed before it becomes a bigger problem. Cleveland entered the game ranked 22nd in offensive rebounds with 10.6 per game, yet the Cavs grabbed 46.8 percent of their missed shots against Memphis. The Grizzlies after Sunday ranked 25th in offense boards allowed (12.1 per game).
“We scored 123 against an elite defense,” Jenkins said. “You just can’t give a team 31 freebies. You can’t have it. This has to be something we address and own even more because it can be an Achilles’ heel for us if we want to get where we can get to as a team.”
The Grizzlies have been getting more consistent efforts from guard Ja Morant, who has endured an injury-plagued season.
He scored 21 points against the Cavaliers and added 10 assists with only one turnover. Morant has scored 20 or more points in three of the team’s past four games.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tour de France final stage rerouted due to wildfires
A firefighter works to battle wildfire near the A9 motorway near Beziers, France, July 3, 2026. Wildfires in southwest France have forced organizers of the Tour de France to reconfigure the final stage, set for Sunday.
The change is necessary because multiple first responders have been diverted to the fires. The new route will leave a smaller race footprint for local officials to secure.
“As numerous wildfires are currently affecting France, particularly the Gironde region, emergency services are fully mobilized to combat the blazes, while internal security forces are working to secure the affected areas and protect the population,” the Amaury Sport Organisation said in a statement.
“In light of this, the Ministry of Interior has decided to redeploy a portion of the internal security forces initially mobilized to ensure security for the final stage of the Tour de France, in order to reinforce the response efforts in the areas affected by the wildfires.”
The wildfires have led to the evacuations of about 200,000 people.
Stage 21 had been set as a 132.5-kilometer ride from Thoiry down the Champs-Elysees in Paris.
The re-imagined Stage 21 still will end along the famed road, just after a circuit on the Montmartre. But the run now will occur solely within the Paris boundaries and travel just 89 km. Cyclists will take two extra circuits along the Champs-Elysees before heading out for the Montmartre climb.
The Montmartre circuit has proven to be popular after it was used in the 2024 Paris Olympics and then added to the 2025 Tour de France. The area can accommodate large gatherings of fans, who turn the area into a party atmosphere.
Earlier in the Tour de France, fans were asked to stay away from the final 40 kilometers of Stage 3 because of wildfires and the need to deploy first responders to the area.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Robert Kraft: Patriots offered CB Christian Gonzalez record-setting deal
Jun 9, 2026; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (0) takes questions from the media at minicamp at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said the team offered Christian Gonzalez a contract extension that would make him the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL.
Kraft did not reveal the specific terms of the deal on Saturday, the first day of training camp.
“We love Christian Gonzalez,” Kraft said during the team’s Pawtriots pet adoption event, per the Boston Herald. “We love him as a player, as a person. That’s why we’ve made an offer to him that makes him the highest-paid player ever to play that position in the NFL, and coincidentally, it’s the highest contract in the Patriots franchise history.
“So we’re glad we drafted him and we developed here, and we hope he’ll be with us for a long time.”
Gonzalez is eligible for a contract extension for the first time after being selected by the Patriots with the 17th overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Los Angeles Rams’ Trent McDuffie is currently the NFL’s highest-paid cornerback, pocketing $31 million per season on his four-year, $131 million contract that he signed this offseason.
Gonzalez, 24, made the Pro Bowl last season after posting 69 tackles and 10 passes defensed in 14 starts. He has three interceptions, 24 passes defensed, one fumble recovery, one sack and 145 tackles in 34 career games (all starts).
–Field Level Media
Sports
49ers' Kyle Shanahan to be limited in camp after serious car crash
San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan talks to the media during the NFL League Meetings on March 30, 2026, at Arizona Biltmore Resort in Phoenix. San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan broke his nose, three ribs and his hand, needed over 40 stitches to his face and sustained a severe concussion after he was involved in a car accident last week, ESPN reported Saturday.
Per the network, the accident occurred on July 14 after Shanahan collided with an SUV near his northern California home.
The other driver was not injured, per Palo Alto lieutenant Nicholas Martinez. Martinez added that drugs and alcohol were not involved.
The 49ers said Shanahan will participate in team activities on a limited basis at the start of training camp, with ESPN reporting doctors will not clear Shanahan for all activities until concussion symptoms clear.
The team said assistant head coach Chris Foerster along with team coordinators will handle the head-coaching responsibilities during this time.
49ers general manager John Lynch is scheduled to hold a news conference at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday.
The Niners are scheduled to hold their first practice of training camp Sunday morning and are set to open the season on Sept. 10 against the Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne, Australia.
Shanahan, 46, will begin his 10th season as head coach in San Francisco. He owns an 82-67 record in the regular season. He has a 9-5 postseason record, guiding the 49ers to a pair of Super Bowl appearances — losing to the Kansas City Chiefs both times (2020, 2024).
–Field Level Media
Tour de France final stage rerouted due to wildfires
Robert Kraft: Patriots offered CB Christian Gonzalez record-setting deal
