Report: Sixers reach a deal to keep Harden in Philadelphia

James Harden has agreed to terms on a twoyear contract to stay with the Philadelphia 76ers and will make about $14.5 million less this coming season than he could have earned under his previous deal, a person with knowledge of the negotiations said Wednesday.

Harden will sign a deal worth slightly over $68 million, paying him about $33 million this season and with a $35 million player option for the 2023-24 season, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team has not announced the deal.

ESPN first reported the agreement being finalized between the 76ers and the 10-time All-Star guard.

Harden had a $47.4 million option for this coming season that he declined last month, saying he wanted to give the 76ers flexibility to improve their roster and compete for a championship. Giving back that much money — Harden basically gave himself a 30% pay cut for this coming season — allowed the 76ers to make moves such as signing power forward P.J. Tucker and small forward Danuel House earlier this month.

“We got some really good pieces this summer, so now it's time for us to go do the hard work,” Harden said in an interview with AP earlier this week to promote the upcoming launch of a new wine label bearing his name.

Harden's plans have been clear since Philadelphia's season ended: He was committed to staying with the 76ers and committed to help them get better.

• Warriors owner Joe Lacob was fined $500,000 by the NBA for his comments about the luxury tax on the Point Forward podcast last week, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

The podcast, which is hosted by Golden State guard Andre Iguodala and former NBA player Evan Turner and, touched on a variety of topics on the July 15 episode, but it was Lacob's comments on the “penal” luxury tax rules the NBA has in place that led to the fine. The league forbids owners from making “unauthorized communication regarding collective bargaining.”

• Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges pleaded not guilty Wednesday to felony domestic violence charges filed by Los Angeles County prosecutors after he was accused of assaulting his girlfriend in front of their two children.

District Attorney George Gascón announced Tuesday that his office filed one felony count of injuring a child's parent and two felony counts of child abuse under circumstances or conditions likely to cause great bodily injury or death.

Bridges entered not guilty pleas during an arraignment, the DA's office said.

Bridges was arrested on June 29 by Los Angeles police and was later released on $130,000 bond.

NCAA addresses gender inequity

The NCAA has adequately addressed nine of 23 recommendations for creating comparable NCAA Tournament experiences for men's and women's basketball players, according to a progress report released Wednesday.

College sports' largest governing body hired a third party to evaluate its response to a scathing report issued almost a year ago that criticized gender inequality in the tournaments.

Among the most visible changes noted in the progress report were “March Madness” branding and increased cross-promotion for both tournaments in 2022, as well as the addition of four teams to the women's tournament to create a “First Four” event to bring it in line with the men's tournament structure.

The NCAA men's and women's basketball committees jointly rejected a recommendation to hold simultaneous Final Fours in the same city, the report said, and NCAA leadership decided against changing the Division I basketball administrative structure. That means vice president of women's basketball Lynn Holzman continues to report to senior vice president of basketball Dan Gavitt.

An outside firm was hired to conduct the assessment and that the NCAA was honoring the firm's request to not be identified, as per company policy, NCAA Associate Director of Communications Meghan Durham told The Associated Press in an email.

“The findings of this assessment illustrate our commitment to advance gender equity at NCAA championships. Thanks to a collaborative spirit, significant accomplishments were achieved this past year,” NCAA President Mark Emmert said. “We have said it before — our work is not finished. Gender equity must remain a priority for leaders throughout college sports and we look forward to continuing to support these efforts moving forward.”

The initial report published in August was done by Kaplan Hecker & Fink LLP, which was hired after the NCAA failed to provide similar amenities to the teams in the 2021 men's and women's Division I tournaments.

The Kaplan report said the NCAA failed to uphold its commitment to gender equity by prioritizing its cash-cow men's tournament “over everything else” and put forth the recommendations that the NCAA has enacted or considered.

The issues that women's players drew attention to have been addressed, the progress report noted. And in addition to the branding improvements, the NCAA increased full-time staff working on women's tournament; improved communication between men's and women's basketball committees; began a program to identify and track areas that need to be the same, comparable and different in men's and women's tournament experiences; hired a third party to produce an annual report on gender-equity initiatives; and issued statements on how gender-equity issues are or will be addressed.

Niners say Garoppolo can look for a trade

Jimmy Garoppolo can officially return to the practice field — and start searching for his next home.

The 49ers have now given their quarterback and his agents permission to seek a trade, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Wednesday afternoon, adding that Garoppolo has also been cleared for practice after March shoulder surgery.

Of course, this is no surprise for anyone who's been following the Garoppolo saga this offseason. The team has signaled its desire for a trade since Garoppolo's season-ending press conference in which he said goodbye to the Bay Area media members who had covered him since midway through the 2017 season.

The 49ers plan to go ahead with 2021 No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance under center, clearing the way to move on from Garoppolo and his cap hit of nearly $27 million.

Garoppolo has been rehabbing the shoulder since March, leaving the trade market unsure of his value while he recovered. But according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, surgeon Neal ElAttrache, who performed the surgery, recently checked up on the quarterback and surmised that all signs point to full recovery. He may have to wait until mid-August for clearance to throw daily, though.

• Former Washington safety Deshazor Everett pleaded guilty to reckless driving for his role in a December crash that killed his passenger.

Everett was initially charged in Virginia with felony involuntary manslaughter in January after an investigation found he was speeding before his sports car slammed into trees and rolled over on the night of Dec. 23.

Reckless driving is a misdemeanor in Virginia punishable by up to a year in jail. He's scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 8 in General District Court in Loudoun County.

Everett's plea to the reduced charge was entered Tuesday. Messages sent to Everett's attorney and a spokesperson for the Commonwealth's Attorney on Wednesday were not immediately returned.

Everett was treated for serious injuries after the crash. His passenger, Olivia S. Peters, 29, of Las Vegas, died at a hospital.

Tennis star Osaka, coach call it quits

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka is in need of a new coach.

Wim Fissette, who began working with Osaka shortly before the start of the 2020 season, wrote on Instagram on Wednesday that he and Osaka are ending their partnership.

“It has been a privilege to coach Naomi since 2019 and see her grow into the Champion she has become,” Fissette's post said. “She has inspired a whole new generation to fall in love with the game & to speak up for what they believe in and it's been incredible to play a part in that journey.”

He also thanked Osaka and closed by writing: “I wish you all the best and looking forward to my next chapter.”

Fissette coached Osaka to two of her major championships — at the 2020 U.S. Open and 2021 Australian Open.

• The Asian Games have been rescheduled to start on Sept. 23 next year in Hangzhou, China, more than 12 months after the original date.

The Olympic Council of Asia on Tuesday confirmed the delayed games would be held from Sept. 23-Oct. 8, saying it took two months of consultations involving the Chinese Olympic Committee and other stakeholders to find “a window” which didn't conflict with other major international sporting events.

The OCA executive board voted in May to postpone the 19th Asian Games because of restrictions in place for the COVID-19 pandemic. The original dates were Sept. 10-25 this year.