Derrick Rose:
Kevin Garnett never imagined himself coaching. Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue is making him consider it.
Lue said he has discussed a position on his staff with Garnett, the 15-time All-Star who recently retired after 21 seasons in the NBA.
Garnett last week ended a playing career that will someday land him in the Hall of Fame. The 40-year-old, who played with a relentlessness and intensity from the time he broke into the league as a teenager, said in the past he wanted to stay tied to basketball but didn’t think he had the patience to coach.
Guard Khris Middleton is expected to miss six months after surgery Wednesday to repair his ruptured left hamstring.
Middleton sustained the injury during preseason workouts Sept. 20.
Bucks:
A federal judge has ordered lawyers handling a rape lawsuit against Rose to temporarily stop talking to reporters.
Rose is being sued by a 30-year-old woman who accuses him and two of his friends of raping her in her apartment in 2013. The trial begins Tuesday in Los Angeles.
The New York Giants are so short of players in the secondary that rookie coach Ben McAdoo had to have a couple of his receivers play safety in practice.
McAdoo would not identify the guys who got shifted Thursday nor would he say whether any of them might be used Monday night when the Giants (2-1) face the Vikings (3-0) on the road.
Who knows? Imagine Odell Beckham Jr. back there . ... He did it in the Pro Bowl.
The truth is the Giants need some bodies in the secondary, and it’s not just safety. They are hurting at cornerback, too.
Let’s start at safety. Rookie starter Darian Thompson missed last weekend’s game with a foot injury. He is still wearing a boot. His backup, Nat Berhe, is in the concussion protocol after being hurt Sunday against the Redskins.
Second-year safety Mykkele Thompson went on injured reserve Sept. 20 with a knee injury.
That leaves starter Landon Collins, Andrew Adams, who was signed off the practice squad late last week, and veteran cornerback Leon Hall, who has shifted to the back line.
Janoris Jenkins is the only healthy starting cornerback. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (groin) and first-round draft pick Eli Apple (hamstring) had to leave Sunday’s game. They did not practice Thursday. If neither can go, veteran backup Trevin Wade and rookie Michael Hunter are next up.
The only good thing for the Giants is the Vikings are 31st in the league in offense and 28th in passing.
Suspended wide receiver Josh Gordon says he’s entering a rehab facility to “gain full control of my life.” Gordon is serving a four-game suspension for multiple violations of the NFL’s substance abuse policy.
He was eligible to return next week, but the troubled 25-year-old released a statement Thursday saying he decided to “step away from pursuing my return to the Browns and my football career to enter an in-patient rehabilitation facility.”
Dez Bryant missed medical appointments and team meetings
Browns: Cowboys:
over two days away from the team this week as the star receiver tried to avoid bad news about his injured right knee.
Coach Jason Garrett said Bryant missed an MRI on Monday and a team meeting Tuesday before finally getting the exam Wednesday. The MRI revealed a hairline fracture in a bone in his right knee, which he injured in last Sunday’s win over Chicago. It’s possible Bryant could play Sunday at San Francisco.
Coach Rex Ryan isn’t yet ready to rule out Sammy Watkins from playing at New England on Sunday after the receiver missed his second straight practice because of a sore left foot.
Ryan doesn’t expect Watkins to practice today either, and says the plan is to see how Watkins feels Sunday before deciding if he’ll play.
Ryan is encouraged about the possibility of starting left tackle Cordy Glenn returning after missing two games with a sprained left ankle. Glenn practiced on a limited basis for a second consecutive day.
Quarterback Jay Cutler did not practice Thursday, one day after returning on a limited basis for the first
Bills: Bears:
time since suffering a thumb sprain Sept. 19. As a result, backup Brian Hoyer continues to run the offense.
The Bears are also without their top two running backs and rookie Jordan Howard appears to be the starter Sunday against the Lions.
Coach Ron Rivera says running back Jonathan Stewart will miss his second straight game Sunday with a hamstring injury when Carolina visits Atlanta. Stewart, who was injured in the team’s Week 2 win against the 49ers and hasn’t practiced since, will be re-evaluated Monday.
Carolina will also be without first-round pick Vernon Butler. The defensive tackle is expected to miss a few weeks with a high ankle sprain.
Panthers: Jets:
Wide receiver Eric Decker sat out his second straight practice with a shoulder injury, increasing the possibility he could miss Sunday’s game against the Seahawks.
Redskins:
A frustrating rookie season for wide receiver Josh Doctson is showing no signs of letting up. Doctson’s sore Achilles could sideline him for a couple more weeks, according to coach Jay Gruden.
Even though they let a win get away Wednesday night, the Boston Red Sox locked up something more important. And as far as they were concerned, an AL East title was certainly worth celebrating.
Boston clinched the division championship despite wasting a three-run lead in the ninth inning of a 5-3 loss to the Yankees. David Ortiz and the Red Sox, who last weekend secured at least a wild-card spot in the playoffs, were assured the crown when Baltimore rallied for a 3-2 win at second-place Toronto nearly 30 minutes before New York completed its comeback against Craig Kimbrel (2-5) and Joe Kelly.
Mark Teixeira’s two-out grand slam off Kelly won it for the Yankees.
“In the end, the one inning, it doesn’t take away from 158 games played to date. They should be extremely proud for winning a very, very difficult division,” manager John Farrell said.
Though the final score in Toronto was posted on the out-of-town scoreboard for all to see, the Red Sox hardly seemed to notice as players draped their arms over the dugout railing and rooted for Kimbrel in the ninth.
Farrell and other Red Sox said they knew the Blue Jays had lost and what that meant, but they were focused on closing out their own game at the time.
Red Sox executives, however, jumped out of their front-row seats next to the Boston dugout and rejoiced when the Blue Jays’ game ended.
Tigers-Indians postponement:
Thursday’s game between the Detroit and Cleveland was postponed because of bad weather, and the teams could have to squeeze in a makeup game Monday if it could affect who makes the postseason. Detroit entered Thursday one game behind Baltimore for the AL’s second wild card.
Infielder Eduardo Nunez still hopes to return from a hamstring injury this weekend for the season-ending series against the Dodgers as San Francisco pursues a wild-card berth, but manager Bruce Bochy considers it “questionable.”
Pitcher Joe Ross, working his way back from the disabled list for the NL East champions, threw 90 pitches in a four-inning start Thursday against the Diamondbacks.
Left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu underwent an arthroscopic cleanup of his left elbow and is expected to be ready for the 2017 season.
DH/first baseman Jesus Montero was suspended 50 games after testing positive for a stimulant, his second penalty for a banned substance. Montero spent this season with Toronto’s Triple-A Buffalo team, batting .317 with 11 home runs and 60 RBIs.
Rookie Hunter Renfroe hit the first home run in Petco Park history to land on the roof of the brick warehouse during Wednesday night’s victory over the Dodgers.
Giants: Nationals: Dodgers: Blue Jays: Padres: Diamondbacks:
Second baseman Jean Segura left Thursday’s game with a cramp, slowing his bid to set the franchise single-season record for hits. Segura has 201 hits, five short of Luis Gonzalez’s record in 1999.
Right-hander Garrett Richards threw off the mound to hitters for the first time since tearing his ulnar collateral ligament May 1. Richards will throw another bullpen session this weekend before continuing his rehabilitation in the instructional league.
Angels: