Sports shorts Elliott receives another reprieve

Dallas Cowboys star Ezekiel Elliott has been granted another legal reprieve in the running back’s fight to avoid a six-game suspension over domestic violence allegations.

A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order blocking the league’s suspension Tuesday night, clearing Elliott to play Sunday at San Francisco.

U.S. District Judge Paul Crotty’s ruling comes five days after a federal appeals court overturned a Texas court’s injunction that had kept Elliott on the field this season.

Crotty granted the request for a temporary restraining order pending a hearing before the presiding judge, Katherine Polk Fialla.

Elliott, last year’s NFL rushing leader as a rookie, was barred from the team’s facility Tuesday as players returned from their off week. The NFL placed him on the suspended list Friday, a day after the ruling from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. Michael Malone knows all about Richard Jefferson. Just not Tuesday, with the deal for the veteran forward still waiting on official word.

“Who’s Jefferson?” the Denver Nuggets coach coyly said after practice.

Jefferson will join the Nuggets on a oneyear deal, a person with knowledge of the negotiations confirmed to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the agreement hasn’t been disclosed by the team. ESPN first reported the deal, which it said is worth $2.3 million.

After weeks of finetuning his roster through training camp and the preseason, Malone suddenly has to juggle things around. Not that he minds carving out minutes for a player he can’t even name just yet. Jefferson adds another leadership presence to a young, playoff-hopeful roster.

“Teams are always trying to find ways to improve in any way, shape or form,” said Malone, whose squad opens the season Wednesday in Utah. “If our front office deemed it necessary to make a move prior to the start of the regular season, that’s something I fully support and they have my 1,000 percent belief in what they’re trying to do. The Chicago Bulls say forward Nikola Mirotic suffered multiple broken bones in his face as well as a concussion in a fight with teammate Bobby Portis during practice.

The team says Mirotic will likely need surgery and is out indefinitely. They say they are “evaluating disciplinary action” after Tuesday’s incident.

Mirotic averaged 10.8 points over his first three seasons with Chicago. A restricted free agent, he signed a two-year contract that could pay as much as $27 million in September.

The club holds an option on the second season.

A 2015 first-round pick, Portis has averaged 6.9 points and 5 rebounds.

The Bulls open at Toronto on Thursday. Chicago is rebuilding after trading Jimmy Butler and parting with Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo. Game-worn jerseys from the four teams playing on the NBA’s opening night will be auctioned to raise money for hurricane recovery efforts.

The NBA and Turner Sports, which will televise the Cleveland-Boston and Golden StateHouston doubleheader on TNT, will use the auction to benefit the One America Appeal.

Besides the jerseys, the auction will include items such as gameworn sneakers and autographed items donated by Turner commentators.

The One America Appeal was launched by the five living former U.S. presidents to support the recovery efforts from Hurricane Harvey and was later expanded to include areas most affected by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

The auction begins Tuesday night and continues through the first two weeks of the season.