Hornets forward Bridges arrested on eve of free agency
Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges was arrested in California on the eve of NBA free agency after a warrant was issued, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
LAPD spokeswoman Lizeth Lomeli confirmed that Bridges was arrested on Wednesday but did not release details on the charges. TMZ reported that Bridges is facing felony domestic violence charges.
Bridges, the Hornets' leading scorer last season, is set to become a restricted free agent and could command a max contract in the coming weeks.
The 24-year-old Bridges averaged career highs with 20.2 points and seven rebounds in what amounted to a breakout season for the four-year NBA veteran.
Bridges, who played at Michigan State, also is a rapper who goes by the name RTB MB.
The Hornets extended Bridges a qualifying offer on Tuesday, which allows them a chance to match any offer sheet made by another team.
“As an organization we love Miles,” Hornets general manager Mitch Kupchak said Tuesday. “We are going to bring him back. He has been great for the franchise and I believe, with his work ethic, he's only going to get better.”
The 6-foot-7, 225-pound Bridges said after the season he wanted to return to the Hornets, but he recently changed his Twitter bio from “forward for the Charlotte Hornets” to “It's me,” adding some intrigue to the situation. Bridges, who played at Michigan State, also is a rapper who goes by the name RTB MB.
The Hornets extended Bridges a qualifying offer on Tuesday, which allows them a chance to match any offer sheet made by another team.
“As an organization we love Miles,” Hornets general manager Mitch Kupchak said Tuesday.
“We are going to bring him back. He has been great for the franchise and I believe, with his work ethic, he's only going to get
better.”
The 6-foot-7, 225-pound Bridges said after the season he wanted to return to the Hornets, but he recently changed his Twitter bio from “forward for the Charlotte Hornets” to “It's me,” adding some intrigue to the situation.
BEAL AGREES TO 5-YEAR, $251M CONTACT WITH WASHINGTON >> Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards have agreed on a five-year contract that could pay him as much as $251 million — one of the largest contracts in NBA history.
Beal's announcement was made by his agent, Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports.
The decision came almost immediately after this season's NBA free agent negotiating window opened Thursday, and is a maxvalue deal.
There have been other contracts with a bit higher value: Damian Lillard's most recent extension in Portland three years ago pushed his existing contract value to $257 million, for example, and Denver's Nikola
Jokic is expected to soon sign a supermax extension of his own that will be worth around $260 million.
AP SOURCE: JOKIC, NUGGETS AGREE ON RECORD $264M EXTENSION >> Nikola Jokic went from No. 41 draft pick, to two-time MVP, and now the holder of the largest contract in NBA history.
Jokic and the Denver Nuggets agreed Thursday to a $264 supermax extension, according to a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither the player nor team announced the agreement.
It begins with the 202324 season and continues through 2027-28 — when, if Jokic exercises his option for that season, he could make roughly $60 million.
The Serbian star has had a meteoric rise in his seven NBA seasons, all with the Nuggets.
He became an All-Star in his fourth season and has stayed at that level since, plus won MVP in each of the last two seasons after averaging 26.4 points in 2020-21 and 27.1 points this past season.
Soccer
US GOVERNMENT DISTRIBUTES $92M FOR CORRUPTION VICTIMS >>
The U.S. Justice Department has distributed about $92 million in additional compensation from money forfeited by convicted officials and associated companies resulting from the government's prosecution of corruption in soccer.
The money is for compensation for losses sustained by FIFA, the Confederation of North and Central American and Caribbean Football, the South American governing body CONMEBOL and various national soccer federations.
The Justice Department last August recognized losses of more than $201 million in the cases, which began with indictments in May 2015, and it announced then an initial $32.2 million payment to a “World Football Remission Fund” overseen by the FIFA Foundation charity.
FIFA's charity supports school projects, helps the sport recover after natural disasters, develops women's and girls' soccer and a FIFA Legends program that uses former players as ambassadors. The money was obtained in forfeitures to federal court in Brooklyn.
Track and field
POLE VAULTER DUPLANTIS IMPROVES WORLD RECORD >>
Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis improved his own outdoor world record by clearing 6.16 meters at the Stockholm Diamond League meet.
Duplantis cleared the bar with plenty to spare on his second attempt to better his previous mark of 6.15, set in Rome in 2020 — when he broke Sergey Bubka's 26-yearold outdoor record.
Duplantis also holds the indoor world record of 6.20, set at the world indoor championships in Serbia this year.
The American-born Duplantis competes for Sweden and is also the reigning Olympic champion.