‘Mental block’ keeps Thompson sidelined

Klay Thompson said that his absences from the Golden State Warriors’ two preseason games in Japan stem from a “mental block” that kept him from playing pickup basketball this summer.

Thompson tore his Achilles playing summer ball two years ago and he’s still working to get over that hurdle. But because he didn’t play a lot this summer, the Warriors training staff told him last week he was unlikely to play in Japan, as he needed more time to ramp up before returning to the court.

“I’m a little sad because I wanted to show these fans a great time,” he said after the NBA Japan Games event on Saturday night. “But I understand we have very big goals to hit, and our training staff did such an incredible job with me last year I’m not going to force my hand when they literally prepared me for a championship run.”

Head coach Steve Kerr announced Friday that Thompson, 32, wouldn’t play in either of the team’s preseason games against the Washington Wizards in Japan for precautionary reasons.

— C.J. Holmes The Houston Rockets traded Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss and David Nwaba to Oklahoma City for Derrick Favors, Maurice Harkless, Ty Jerome, Théo Maledon and a second-round draft pick in 2026. The Rockets also received cash in the deal.

U.S. basketball claims victory in World Cup

A’ja Wilson scored 19 points, Kelsey Plum added 17 and the United States beat China 83-61 to win its fourth consecutive gold medal at the women’s basketball World Cup in Sydney.

This was one of the most dominant teams in the Americans’ storied history in the World Cup, where the U.S. has won 11 gold medals. This also was the biggest win in a gold-medal game, surpassing the 20-point wins that the Americans had done twice. College football: Blake Corum rushed for 133 yards and a touchdown, J.J. McCarthy threw for 155 yards and a touchdown and No. 4 Michigan defeated host Iowa 27-14 . ... Austin Keys and Jared Ivey each forced fumbles in the final three minutes, both inside the red zone, and No. 14 Mississippi held off No. 7 Kentucky 2219 at home . ... Max Duggan ran 67 yards for one of two touchdowns and threw for three scores, leading host TCU to a 55-24 rout of No. 18 Oklahoma . ... Adrian Martinez rushed for 171 yards and three TDs and threw for another score to lead No. 25 Kansas State past visiting Texas Tech 37-28. NFL: The NFL Players Association fired the unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant who evaluated Miami Dolphins quarterback

Tua Tagovailoa for a concussion after he stumbled off the field during a game against Buffalo last Sunday, a person familiar with the decision told the Associated Press.

The person who confirmed the firing, first reported by Pro Football Talk, spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because a joint review by the NFL and its players’ union into Tagovailoa’s quick return to that game is ongoing.

Saints quarterback Jameis Winston will not play against the Minnesota Vikings in London on Sunday because of a back injury, the team confirmed Saturday . ... Myles Garrett will not play in Sunday’s game against Atlanta, giving the Browns defensive end more time to recover from an auto crash earlier in the week. Baseball: Aaron Judge went 0for-2 with two walks and was hit by a pitch, remaining at 61 homers on the 61st anniversary of Roger Maris setting the AL record of 61, and the host New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-0 . ... Seiya Suzuki hit a tiebreaking solo homer in the seventh inning, and the host Chicago Cubs beat Cincinnati 2-1 for their sixth straight win . ... Starter Kyle Gibson was rocked for eight hits and seven runs in six innings, including homers by Luke Voit and Joey Meneses, and host Washington beat Philadelphia 13-4 in the first game of a doubleheader.

Shohei Ohtani has agreed to a $30 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels for the 2023 season in the two-way superstar’s final year of arbitration eligibility. The contract allows the Angels to avoid a potentially complicated arbitration case with the 2021 AL MVP.

Soccer: Gabriel Jesus marked his first north London derby with a goal as Arsenal beat Tottenham 3-1 to strengthen its grip on first place in the English Premier League . ... Leandro Trossard completed his hat trick with an 83rd-minute equalizer to earn Brighton a 3-3 draw at Liverpool. ... Miguel Almiron struck twice as Newcastle cruised to a 4-1 victory at Fulham . ... Conor Gallagher got the last-minute winner in Chelsea’s 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace . ... Everton scored twice for the first time this season to win 2-1 at Southampton . ... Bournemouth was left fuming after being denied a penalty kick in a 0-0 draw with Brentford. The Cherries were perplexed by referee Thomas Bramall ruling out a spot kick despite being ordered to the pitchside monitors by the VAR official . ... Gianluca Scamacca and Jarrod Bowen scored to drag West Ham out of the relegation zone at the expense of Wolverhampton in a 2-0 win.

Gustavo Bou scored in the 85th minute to help the New England Revolution to a 2-1 victory over visiting Atlanta United in MLS action.