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NBA hires former Obama counsel, Google exec Albert Sanders Jr. to head ref operations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

The NBA has hired Albert Sanders Jr., a Google executive and former associate counsel to President Barack Obama, as its new head of referee operations.He will be an executive vice president, working with Monty McCutchen, the senior vice president for referee development and training. Sanders will report to Byron Spruell, the NBA’s president for league operations.Other than being a fan, Sanders has no extensive basketball or officiating background. But the NBA has experts in those areas, and Sanders’ work in leadership is what made the league want him for this, Spruell said.“I’m not an officiating expert and we don’t expect Albert to be,” Spruell said. “But we expect him to elevate the program with his operations and his strategy background. We know he can do that.”Spruell sees parallels between how the referee operations department will work and how NBA teams are structured. Sanders will essentially be general manager, with McCutchen the coach and a team of assista...

Versatile forwards including Stewart, Wilson in WNBA playoffs reflect growth of women’s game

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The WNBA game has changed and its evolution can be seen in the WNBA semifinals.From Lisa Leslie and Tina Thompson to Lauren Jackson, Candace Parker and Elena Delle Donne, there have always been one or two post players with the ability to step out and shoot the 3 or be a playmaker away from the basket. They changed the way the game has been played over the 27-year history of the league.Today, WNBA rosters list those coveted forwards withe versatile skillsets.The top six finishers in the MVP race were forwards and the top three vote getters — Breanna Stewart, A’ja Wilson and Alyssa Thomas as well as fifth place finisher Satou Sabally — have led their teams to the semifinals that continue Friday night.“You saw it on the men’s side. You go back to Tina Thompson and Lauren Jackson. Breanna Stewart fits in that slot where it’s just big and highly skilled,” Aces coach Becky Hammon said. “A’ja is big, athletic and highly skilled. Her efficiency has been off the charts....

Bank that handles Infowars money appears to be cutting ties with Alex Jones’ company, lawyer says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A bank recently shut down the accounts of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ media company, citing unauthorized transactions — a move that caused panic at the business when its balances suddenly dropped from more than $2 million to zero, according to a lawyer for the company.The action last week by Axos Bank also exposed worry and doubt at the company, Free Speech Systems, about being able to find another bank to handle its money.Jones, a conservative provocateur whose Infowars program promotes fake theories about global conspiracies, UFOs and mind control, is seeking bankruptcy protection as he and his company owe $1.5 billion to relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut.The debt is the result of the families winning lawsuits against Jones for his calling the massacre that killed 26 people a hoax and his supporters threatening and harassing the victims’ families.A lawyer for Free Speech Systems, Ray Battaglia, to...

NASCAR to return to Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval for 30th anniversary of debut at the Brickyard

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — NASCAR will return to the 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway next season for the 30-year anniversary of stock cars racing at the historic venue. The inaugural Brickyard 400 was held on Aug. 6, 1994, and was won by Indiana icon Jeff Gordon in the first of his five Indianapolis victories. That NASCAR debut was the first race beside the Indianapolis 500 to be held at the famous track since 1916. NASCAR raced on the oval from 1994 through 2020, but under Roger Penske’s ownership of IMS the race was held on the 2.439-mile road course the last three seasons as part of a shared weekend with the IndyCar Series. The Brickyard 400 will be held on July 21, with the Xfinity Series racing on the oval one day earlier. “While it’s been exciting to watch the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series drivers tackle the IMS road course over the last three years, being back on the oval for the 30th anniversary is a much-anticipated homecoming for drivers and fans alike,” said D...

Analysis: Adrian Griffin, as he enters Year 1 as a coach, is the winner of the Lillard trade

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

The Milwaukee Bucks were winners of the Damian Lillard trade sweepstakes, obviously, because they got him. Damian Lillard was a winner of the sweepstakes, also obviously, because now he gets a chance to really contend for an NBA title, even if he didn’t get sent to Miami like he preferred.Lillard and the Bucks were not the biggest winners, however.That title goes to Adrian Griffin, who is about to officially start Year 1 as a head coach.Picture this: You’re a first-time NBA head coach, already hired to take over a team won the championship two years ago and had the best regular-season record in the league last year. You were given the keys to a team led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, a two-time MVP still very much in his prime and someone who on any given night could be the best player walking the planet. You inherited a team with great leadership in Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez, ownership willing to spend and a sharp general manager in Jon Horst. And now, a few days before your first...

NATO’s secretary-general meets with Zelenskyy to discuss ‘ending Russia’s aggression’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss the status of the war and needs of troops on Thursday, the day after Russia accused Ukraine’s Western allies of helping plan and conduct last week’s missile strike on the Black Sea Fleet’s headquarters on the annexed Crimean Peninsula.Zelenskyy said that Stoltenberg agreed to make efforts to get NATO members to help provide additional air defense systems to protect Ukraine’s power plants and energy infrastructure that were badly damaged in relentless and deadly attacks by Russia last winter. He also reminded the secretary-general of the persistent drone, missile and artillery attacks that often strike residential areas and were blamed Thursday for at least three civilian deaths in the past day. “In the face of such intense attacks against Ukrainians, against our cities, our ports, which are crucial for global food security, we need a corresponding intensity of pressur...

No. 10 Utah is looking for an improved offensive showing against No. 19 Oregon State

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

Utah quarterback Nate Johnson took responsibility for 10th-ranked Utah’s disappointing offensive output against UCLA, promising improvement as he looked ahead to Friday night’s game at Oregon State. “I apologize for how the game played out,” Johnson posted to social media after Utah’s 14-7 victory over UCLA to open Pac-12 play last Saturday.Utah (4-0, 1-0 Pac-12) scored both its touchdowns against the Bruins in the first half, on Karene Reid’s 21-yard interception return and Johnson’s 7-yard scoring pass to Landen King. Utah managed just 219 yards of total offense. Johnson expounded on the need for improvement this week in preparing to face the No. 19 Beavers (3-1, 0-1) at Reser Stadium. “I still believe in our offense, our offense is really good. We’ve just got to execute plays better,” he said. While Utah coach Kyle Whittingham was impressed with Johnson holding himself accountable, Utah’s offensive woes weren’t solely his resp...

Varios muertos en dos tiroteos en la ciudad neerlandesa de Rotterdam, dice la Policía

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

(CNN) — Un hombre de 32 años fue arrestado en la ciudad neerlandesa de Rotterdam tras dos tiroteos mortales este jueves, dijo la Policía de la ciudad. El hombre era estudiante de la Universidad Erasmus, según informaron las autoridades.Por el momento se desconoce el número exacto de muertos por los tiroteos.“Los dos tiroteos en Rotterdam provocaron víctimas mortales. Primero informaremos a familiares y parientes y explicaremos más detalles más adelante”, dijo la Policía de la ciudad en un comunicado en X, anteriormente Twitter.El sospechoso fue arrestado “debajo del helipuerto” del Centro Médico de la Universidad Erasmus, dijeron las autoridades. Estaba armado con una pistola cuando fue detenido.Más temprano, la Policía dijo que recibió varios informes de dos incidentes con disparos en el área del Centro Médico de la Universidad Erasmus alrededor de las 2:25 p.m., hora local (8:25 a. m. ET), y agregó que los incidentes ocurrieron en una casa y en un sal...

Commerce City police investigating shooting inside McDonald's

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- The Commerce City Police Department is investigating a shooting that occurred inside the McDonald’s near 60th Avenue and Parkway Drive on Thursday. Commerce City PD tweeted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that one teen was transported to the hospital with unknown injuries.  Troopers find 290 pounds of cocaine during traffic stop The restaurant is currently closed.Police are on the scene.This is breaking news. FOX31 will update this post when more information comes out.

Biden is targeting Trump’s ‘extremist movement’ as he makes democracy a touchstone in reelection bid

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:03:22 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — President Joe Biden is arguing that “there is something dangerous happening in America” as he revives his warnings that Donald Trump and his allies represent an existential threat to the country’s democratic institutions.“There is an extremist movement that does not share the basic beliefs of our democracy. The MAGA movement,” Biden says in excerpts of the speech Thursday in Arizona, released in advance by the White House, referring to Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan.Although voting in the 2024 Republican primary doesn’t begin for months, Biden’s focus reflects Trump’s status as the undisputed frontrunner for his party’s nomination despite facing four indictments, two of them related to his attempts to overturn Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.Biden’s speech is his fourth in a series of presidential addresses on the topic, a cause that is a touchstone for him as he tries to remain in office even in the face of low ...