Indiana Fever sign Aari McDonald as emergency player after Caitlin Clark injury

Indiana Fever sign Aari McDonald as emergency player after Caitlin Clark injury

WithCaitlin Clark still out with an injury, and other players on the roster getting banged up, theIndiana Feverhave added a guard to help. Indiana signed Aari McDonald Monday via an emergency hardship exception. The exception allows any WNBA team to sign a player immediately if it has less than 10 game-eligible players available at any time during the season. The signing comes asClark remains sidelined due to a left quadriceps strainthat was announced following the loss to the New York Liberty on May 25. The 2024 WNBA rookie of the year will miss at least two weeks with her first possible game back onJune 10at theAtlanta Dream. Clark isn't the only injured player the Fever have. Sophie Cunningham and Sydney Colson were injured in the team's loss to Connecticut Sun on Friday, leaving Kelsey Mitchell and Lexie Hull as the only healthy point guards for Indiana, paving the way for the Fever to sign McDonald. "When I got the call I was very excited, very blessed," McDonald said Monday. "It's a humbling experience to join a team like the Fever, and I'm excited, ready to compete and just win." Indiana is 2-4 on the season and is on a three-game losing streak. McDonald burst onto the scene as a member of the Arizona Wildcats after starting her college career at Washington. She had a memorable senior season in Tucson as she was named Pac-12 player of the year and led Arizona to its first Final Four appearance in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats advanced to the national championship and lost by one-point to Stanford. She was drafted third overall in the 2021 WNBA Draft by the Atlanta Dream and was named to the WNBA All-Rookie Team in her first season. McDonald played three seasons in Atlanta before she was traded to theLos Angeles Sparksprior to the 2024 season. She played in 26 games for Los Angeles and was released by the team before the start of the 2025 season. In four years in the league, McDonald has averaged 8.6 points, 2.8 assists and 2 rebounds per game. The Indiana Fever host the Washington Mystics on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The game will be televised on NBA TV and can be streamed on WNBA League Pass. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Indiana Fever sign Aari McDonald with Caitlin Clark, others injured

byAlex Perish

in

June 02, 2025

Indiana Fever sign Aari McDonald as emergency player after Caitlin Clark injury

Indiana Fever sign Aari McDonald as emergency player after Caitlin Clark injury WithCaitlin Clark still out with an injury, and other player...

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The 49ers complete trade to acquire edge rusher Bryce Huff from the Eagles for a mid-round pick

The 49ers complete trade to acquire edge rusher Bryce Huff from the Eagles for a mid-round pick

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers have completed the trade with the Philadelphia Eagles for edge rusher Bryce Huff. Huff restructured his contractwith the Eagles last week to help facilitate the trade that will send a 2026 mid-round pick to Philadelphia and the teams announced it on Monday, pending a physical. Huff was set to make $17 million in fully guaranteed money this year. The Eagles will pay $9.05 million of that with the 49ers on the hook for the remaining $7.95 million, ESPN reported last week. The move to acquire Huff gives San Francisco another needed option at edge rusher across from star Nick Bosa and reunites Huff with Robert Saleh, who was his head coach at the New York Jets during his most productive season in 2023. Huff had 10 sacks that season and recorded 67 pressures on just 334 pass rush snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. Huff translated that breakthrough season into a three-year, $51.1 million deal with the Eagles. He had only 2 1/2 sacks and 23 pressures in his one season in Philadelphia, missing five games witha wrist injury. He was then a healthy scratch in the Super Bowl. Huff was originally an undrafted free agent by the Jets in 2020 out of Memphis. He had 7 1/2 sacks in his first three seasons before the breakthrough campaign under Saleh in 2023. The Niners were in need of another pass rusher after cutting Leonard Floyd early in the offseason. They drafted Mykel Williams 11th overall in April but had no other defensive end who had a season with at least five sacks in the NFL. Yetur Gross-Matos is the only other edge rusher on the roster with extensive experience. Gross-Matos had four sacks last season in his first year with San Francisco. The Eagles have undergone significant changes at edge rusher this offseason withBrandon Graham retiringand Josh Sweat leaving tosign with Arizonain free agency. Philadelphia is counting on increased contributions from returning players Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt and has also signed Azeez Ojulari and Joshua Uche in free agency. ___ AP NFL:https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

byAlex Perish

in

June 02, 2025

The 49ers complete trade to acquire edge rusher Bryce Huff from the Eagles for a mid-round pick

The 49ers complete trade to acquire edge rusher Bryce Huff from the Eagles for a mid-round pick SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco...

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'Inside the NBA' will reportedly run as usual with 'extensive' postgame show on ESPN networks

'Inside the NBA' will reportedly run as usual with 'extensive' postgame show on ESPN networks

By almost all previous accounts, ESPN has no plans to interfere with "Inside the NBA" when the iconic studio show transitions from TNT to its own networks next season. Butconcerns linger that ESPN will do something to mess things up, specifically around the timing of the show. Will ESPN — a network that doesn't do dedicated NBA postgame coverage — continue to allow "Inside the NBA" to run as usual after games? Per a report on Monday, it will.Front Office Sports reportedfurther details about the show's move to ESPN's networks starting in the 2025-26 season — most notably that "Inside the NBA" will be allowed "extensive" postgame run after games that air on ESPN networks, including its parent network, ABC. From the report: "There will be an extensive post-game show, say sources. ESPN's goal is to let the post-game segment run as long as it does now on TNT." That's cause for relief for the show's loyal viewers, many of whom have watched some combination of Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal guide and entertain them after NBA games for decades. The show is appointment viewing for fans, even when the games that the show covers are not. Despite that reassurance, there's been legitimate reason for concern that ESPN won't give "Inside the NBA" the runway that it's enjoyed at TNT. ESPN's track record with decisions around NBA studio content is dicey at best and a big reason that chairman Jimmy Pitaro outsourced it to "Inside the NBA" when he saw the chance. Smith raised those concerns inan interview with the New Yorkerafter the TNT/ESPN partnership was announced. "We have the same crew of people doing the show," Smith said. "But the timing: Are we a half hour now? Are we forty-five minutes? Fifteen minutes? "Those are the things that you can control when you own your I.P. But we don't. That was the only part that made me uncomfortable and disheartened, because I felt that the four of us should have went into ABC to negotiate that deal. I'm not saying that our executives don't know how to do that, but we are the I.P. now." Podcaster and former ESPN writer and personality Bomani Jones floated concern about "Inside the NBA" running as a dedicated postgame show on Monday while raising another question: Is ESPN really going to let Charles Barkley speak unfiltered in postgame coverage over the traditional and inherently more conservative airwaves of ABC? Will TNT's 'Inside the NBA' hit the same on ESPN?"If you're not gonna do the Inside the NBA postgame show, you're getting rid of the best part of it."pic.twitter.com/yqIygZDPGt — The Right Time with Bomani Jones (@righttimebomani)June 2, 2025 "My concern about taking 'Inside' to ESPN, ESPN historically has not done postgame shows," Jones said in an edited clip from his show Monday morning. "If you're not gonna do the 'Inside the NBA' postgame show, you're getting rid of the best part. "It doesn't seem like it'll be a gratifying experience. But they also can't put that on ABC. That would be preposterous." There's also the subject ESPN's existing coverage. ESPN has an established postgame routine that features one of its own strongest brands, "SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt." Is ESPN going to preempt Van Pelt in favor of an outsourced product? SVP's show frequently features an immediate postgame interview with the star of the game, which is also the turf of "Inside the NBA." Doing both shows at the same time on different ESPN networks doesn't make much sense. Then there's ESPN's much-maligned existing studio coverage that handles pregame and halftime coverage that's also the turf of the "Inside the NBA" team. ESPN previously announced that "NBA Countdown" and "NBA Today," will continue to air in some form. So "Inside the NBA" isn't fully replacing ESPN's NBA studio coverage. The FOS report didn't address specifics. And ESPN did not comment on how "Inside the NBA will be scheduled." But thanks to its extensive collection of networks, ESPN does have options. If the game airs on ABC, ESPN would have the option of tossing postgame "Inside the NBA" coverage to ESPN. Would it use a similar strategy to juggle "Inside the NBA" with SVP's "SportsCenter"? Airing both in competing time slots on different ESPN networks seems equally preposterous. They're both marquee, spotlight shows that demand access to postgame coverage from the arena. It would appear to be a one or the other decision for ESPN, with Monday's FOS report suggesting that "Inside the NBA" will have priority over SVP in whatever decision is made. But again, ESPN has not confirmed scheduling specifics. It has confirmed in previous statements that "TNT Sports will continue to independently produce 'Inside the NBA'" in addition to providing the following broader framework for when the show will air: "The legendary 'Inside the NBA' studio team will appear on ESPN and ABC surrounding high-profile live events, including ESPN's pregame, halftime and postgame coverage of the NBA Finals on ABC, conference finals, NBA playoffs, all ABC games after January 1, Christmas Day, opening week, the final week of the season and other marquee live events." Will ESPN's established studio show be relegated to covering games that aren't considered "marquee" or "high-profile?" A lot of these questions remain unanswered, perhaps because ESPN hasn't yet figured the details out. Until it does and we see "Inside the NBA" on ESPN's networks, we won't be fully sure what the merger will look like.

byAlex Perish

in

June 02, 2025

'Inside the NBA' will reportedly run as usual with 'extensive' postgame show on ESPN networks

'Inside the NBA' will reportedly run as usual with 'extensive' postgame show on ESPN networks By almost all previous account...

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Brit Hume Says Ukraine Exposed ‘Embarrassing’ Russian Weakness

Brit Hume Says Ukraine Exposed 'Embarrassing' Russian Weakness

Brit Hume said on Fox News Monday that Ukraine's surprise strike on Russia's strategic bomber fleet not only shattered Moscow's air capabilities but also exposed a lapse in Russian intelligence and defense preparedness. Ukrainelauncheda surprise drone attack that destroyed nearly a third of Russia's strategic bomber fleet in a single day, in an operation personally overseen by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after 18 months of secret planning. During an appearance on "Special Report with Bret Baier," Hume pointed out what he said were the broader implications of the attack. "Yeah, it certainly does establish that this country, whose president was being told at the White House that he didn't have any cards to play, that he apparently has quite a few cards to play, including this daring attack," Hume said when asked about the element of surprise and the embarrassment it caused for the Russians. Hume pointed to this latest operation as proof that Ukraine remains capable of inflicting serious damage despite Russia's perceived military dominance. WATCH: "If the Ukrainians can be believed [to have] wiped out about 30 to 40% of Russia's strategic bombing force [then] that's a major setback for Russia. It is an embarrassing intelligence failure," Hume said. Hume said he credited Ukraine's ingenuity and suggested their military continues to innovate in ways that catch Russian forces off guard.(RELATED: Brit Hume Says Trump Deal With Iran Only Works Under One Condition) "[It's] an embarrassing defense failure, and who knows what else the Ukrainians who have proved pretty ingenious may have up their sleeves," Hume said. A week before Ukraine's surprise attack, Russialaunchedits largest drone assault of the war, unleashing 355 drones across Ukraine just hours after President Donald Trump criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin and said he was "not happy" with the ongoing attacks. Ukrainian officials said the strike marked the most extensive aerial offensive since the conflict began in 2022. Trump has mademultipleattemptsto broker peace between Russia and Ukraine, most recentlycallingPutin on May 19 to restart negotiations. Just days earlier, both sides carried out the largest prisoner swap of the war, exchanging 1,000 detainees each. They agreed to begin drafting terms for future talks. Whilenegotiationsmove forward, Russian forces continue to push deeper into Ukrainian territory and target critical infrastructure with drone and missile strikes. All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter's byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contactlicensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

byAlex Perish

in

June 02, 2025

Brit Hume Says Ukraine Exposed ‘Embarrassing’ Russian Weakness

Brit Hume Says Ukraine Exposed 'Embarrassing' Russian Weakness Brit Hume said on Fox News Monday that Ukraine's surprise strike ...

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Asian markets rise as US stock indexes near records amid easing trade tensions

Asian markets rise as US stock indexes near records amid easing trade tensions

Shares rose early Tuesday in Asia after U.S. stock indexes drifted closer to records, while oil prices extended gains. Beijing and Washington dialed back trade friction as the U.S. extended exemptions fortariffson some Chinese goods, including solar manufacturing equipment, that U.S. industries rely on for their own production. The U.S. Trade Representative extended those exemptions, which were due to expire on May 31, by three months through Aug. 31. Still,China criticized the U.S.on Monday over moves it alleged harmed Chinese interests, including issuing AI chip export control guidelines, stopping the sale of chip design software to China, and planning to revoke Chinese student visas. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.1% to 23,417.39, while the Shanghai Composite index added 0.3% to 3,356.36. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 advanced 0.6% to 37,683.19. South Korean markets were closed fora snap presidential electiontriggered by the ouster ofYoon Suk Yeol, a conservative who now faces an explosivetrial on rebellion chargesover his short-lived imposition ofmartial lawin December. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.7% to 8,475.50. In Taiwan, the Taiex gained 1.4%. On Monday, U.S. stock indexes drifted closer to their records following astellar May, Wall Street's best month since 2023. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% to 5,935.94 after erasing an early loss from the morning. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1% to 42,305.48. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.7% to 19,242.61. Indexes had fallen close to 1% in the morning following some discouraging updates on U.S. manufacturing.President Donald Trumphas been warning that U.S. businesses and households could feel some pain as he tries to use tariffs to bring more manufacturing jobs back to the country, and theiron-and-off rollouthas created lots of uncertainty. But stocks rallied back as the day progressed. Nvidia climbed 1.7%, and Meta Platforms rose 3.6%, for example. Oil prices have gained as attacks by Ukraine in Russiaraise uncertainty about the flow of oil and gas around the world. Early Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil was up 62 cents at $63.14 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, picked up 57 cents to $65.19 per barrel. Markets took in stride fresh salvos between the world's two largest economies, just a few weeks afterthe United States and China had agreed to pausemany of their tariffs that had threatened to drag the economy into a recession. That followedPresident Donald Trump'saccusation at the end of last week, where he said China was not living up to its end of the agreement that paused their tariffs against each other. Trump on Fridaytold Pennsylvania steelworkershe's doubling thetariff on steel importsto 50% to protect their industry, a dramatic increase that could further push up prices for a metal used to make housing, autos and other goods. That helped stocks of U.S. steelmakers climb. Nucor jumped 10.1%, and Steel Dynamics rallied 10.3%. On the losing side of Wall Street were automakers and other heavy users of steel and aluminum. Ford fell 3.9%, and General Motors reversed by 3.9%. Lyra Therapeutics soared nearly 311% for one of the market's biggest gains after reporting positive late-stage trial results of an implant to treat chronic sinus inflammation in some patients. In the bond market, Treasury yields rose asworries continue about how much debt the U.S. government will pile ondue to plans to cut taxes and increase the deficit. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.44% from 4.41% late Friday and from just 4.01% roughly two months ago. That's a notable move for the bond market. Besides making it more expensive for U.S. households and businesses to borrow money, such increases in Treasury yields can deter investors from paying high prices for stocks and other investments. Yields had dipped briefly in the morning, before rallying back, following the updates on manufacturing, which suggested that effects of Trump's tariffs are taking root in the economy. A report from S&P Global on manufacturing came in better than expected, though uncertainty caused by tariffs has worries high about supplier delays and rising prices. Also early Tuesday, the dollar rose to 143.10 Japanese yen from 142.71 yen. The euro slipped to $1.1438 from $1.1443. ___ AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.

byAlex Perish

in

June 02, 2025

Asian markets rise as US stock indexes near records amid easing trade tensions

Asian markets rise as US stock indexes near records amid easing trade tensions Shares rose early Tuesday in Asia after U.S. stock indexes dr...

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