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Nuggets Podcast: Nikola Jokic’s second ejection, Jamal Murray’s nagging injuries and Julian Strawther catching fire

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

In the latest edition of the Nuggets Ink Podcast, beat writer Bennett Durando and sports editor Matt Schubert talk ejections, suspensions, injuries and rookie prowess. Among the topics discussed:Is Nikola Jokic being unfairly refereed by officiating crews around the NBA? After getting ejected for the second time this season — while shooting just six free throws per game — is there a case that the two-time MVP isn’t receiving the same whistle as other stars?Draymond Green is off to therapy after his latest heinous act on a basketball court. What is the reality of who he is at this point in his career?Jamal Murray is closer to saying goodbye to a supermax contract as the injuries mount. Is it time for the Nuggets to take a step back and hold him out of more games to allow him time to fully heal? Or is this destined to be a recurring theme this season?Bennett, who has been on the Julian Strawther train since day one, discusses his back-to-back games of note. Is he among the...

Retaining competitive edge the key for CU Buffs in visit from UNC Bears

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

Tad Boyle knows what a solid Northern Colorado basketball team looks like. Boyle coached one of the best hoops teams in Bears history.So while this year’s version of the UNC Bears is a team in transition after losing a pair of premier scorers, Boyle has been quick to caution his Colorado men’s basketball team about complacency.Coming off their biggest win of the season’s early stages, the Buffaloes are hitting a slower competition window two weeks ahead of the start of Pac-12 Conference play with renewed confidence and an understanding that any off night can have long-lasting ramifications.Friday night’s date is part of a two games-in-18 days stretch for the Buffs, who nearly rejoined the Associated Press Top 25 this week but once again are likely to play without standout freshman Cody Williams.“They’ve recruited some good players. I like their personnel,” said Boyle, who coached at UNC for four seasons and led the Bears to a 25-win season in 2009-10 prior to his arrival at CU. “You...

Colorado could capture wolves within days — unless a judge delays the state’s reintroduction efforts

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

A federal judge plans to issue a ruling Friday deciding whether to delay the reintroduction of wolves in Colorado based on a legal challenge filed this week by ranchers.Unless a court order puts the reintroduction on hold, state officials said during a hearing Thursday that they could be just days away from capturing wolves to bring to Colorado.The Colorado Cattlemen’s Association and the Gunnison County Stockgrowers’ Association on Monday filed a federal lawsuit against Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The lawsuit alleges that the government agencies violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to produce an environmental impact statement while renewing a cooperation agreement between the two agencies about conserving endangered species.The lawsuit and subsequent filings by the livestock groups asked U.S. District Court Judge Regina Rodriguez to halt Colorado’s reintroduction efforts while the litigation proceeds.Colorado Parks ...

Joe Flacco signs 1-year deal with Browns, QB can earn incentives with playoff run, Super Bowl win

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

By TOM WITHERS (AP Sports Writer)BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Joe Flacco’s officially signed and sealed with Cleveland. He’s already delivered.Flacco got a one-year, $4.05 million contract — loaded with incentives — on Thursday from the Browns, who brought in the veteran quarterback last month while in emergency mode after losing starter Deshaun Watson for the season with a right shoulder injury.Flacco’s deal means the 38-year-old moves from the practice squad to the active roster. And while it was more procedural than anything, it assures he’ll be with the Browns (8-5) as they try to clinch a playoff spot.The team elevated Flacco from the practice squad in each of the past two weeks to start games against the Los Angeles Rams and Jacksonville.While he was on the practice squad, other teams could have signed him, and Flacco wasn’t aware of any trying.“I wouldn’t have went though, anyway,” he said. “It’s been great h...

Congress departs without a deal on Ukraine aid and border security, but Senate will work next week

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

By STEPHEN GROVES, LISA MASCARO and SEUNG MIN KIM (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress was departing Washington on Thursday without a deal to pass wartime support for Ukraine, but Senate negotiators and President Joe Biden’s administration were still racing to wrap up a border security compromise to unlock the stalemate before the end of the year.The Senate planned to come back next week in hopes of passing the $110 billion package of aid for Ukraine, Israel and other national security and finalizing a deal to place new restrictions on asylum claims at the U.S. border. But the House showed no sign of returning to push the legislation through the full Congress.Lawmakers leaving the impasse unresolved through the holidays would mean the Biden administration would have to rely on a dwindling supply of funds for Ukraine. The wartime aid has so far been vital to Ukraine’s defending against Russia’s invasion, but an emboldened Russian President Vladimir Put...

Mayor Karen Bass wants to bring more businesses to L.A. as part of her 2024 goal

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

It's been one year since Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was sworn in.She's made solving homelessness a top priority for the city. Last year, she launched the "Inside Safe" program, which helped relocate about 2,000 people through Nov. 30 of this past year. However, close to 400 of those left the program. This comes as 46,000 people are experiencing homelessness in L.A. "Overall, if you look at how many people were moved off the streets this year, we're talking about 21,000 in a variety of different ways, a lot of things to do in the next year," Bass explained the KTLA 5's Frank Buckley and Megan Telles. "But I think one of the most important things that we accomplished is destroying the myth that people won't leave the streets."She then provided an example of how unhoused people are telling others about the program. "We go to house people in an encampment, and there'll be 20 people. We've counted two days ahead of time, the move-out day 30 people show up. So people are coming, the unh...

Why SF Giants are all-in on pitching, defense after missing out on Ohtani

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

In the wake of missing out on Shohei Ohtani, a unique opportunity to add superstar-sized thump to their lineup, the San Francisco Giants are going all-in on pitching and defense, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi suggested this week.“The fact that we have a staff that throws a ton of strikes, gets a lot of ground balls, if we can put a good defense behind that group, I think we have a chance to be really good next year,” Zaidi said. “We’re going to continue to look for athleticism up the middle of the diamond, look for players whether it’s by trade or free agency who will put our players in their best defensive spots, not having guys playing out of position, and really support our pitching staff, which we’ve talked about as a strength of our team.”A quick pivot to 25-year-old Korean outfielder Jung-Hoo Lee, pending a physical, is only step one.If all is well with his surgically repaired left ankle, Lee’s reported six-year, $113 million deal ...

Human remains found in June near Oakland Zoo officially identified; police say man was a homicide victim 

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

OAKLAND — The skeletal remains of a man found in June near the Oakland Zoo have been identified as a 63-year-old Oakland man who had been reported missing in February, authorities said.Although they won’t say exactly how the man died, police investigators have officially classified his death as a homicide.Working with the coroner’s office, police have identified the man as Julio Chavez-Montoya, a boiler maintenance worker in downtown Oakland.His remains were found about 1:09 p.m. June 23 in the 10100 block of Golf Links Road near Elysian Fields Drive by a man whose goats were performing wildfire fuel mitigation in the area, authorities said.He was last seen alive in late January and was reported missing by his family on Feb. 13, police said.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Alameda County DA dismisses double murder case after lawyer found second gun at crime scene Crime and Public Safety | Jewish community replaces Lake Merritt me...

Warriors face potential franchise-altering questions after Draymond Green suspension, GM Dunleavy says

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

LOS ANGELES — Draymond Green’s indefinite suspension not only leaves Golden State without a key cog for an undetermined time period, but opens up a defining stretch for the Warriors’ future, general manager Mike Dunleavy said.Green will be around the team for practices while also taking time away to tend to a personal matter that is connected to his recent on-court outbursts, Dunleavy said. Green has now been suspended twice this season, first for five games for putting Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert in a chokehold and, his latest, for hitting Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face with a flailing arm.“The biggest thing to me right now isn’t the punishment, it’s helping him out and giving him assistance,” Dunleavy said at the Warriors’ shootaround on Thursday.The NBA passed down an indefinite suspension with his return to play contingent on completing required work on himself, which Dunleavy said was an agreement between Green and his age...

Castro Valley: Witness-turned-murder-defendant released from jail in latest twist during contentious case

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:10:25 GMT

OAKLAND — A California woman has been released from jail less than a month after prosecutors charged her with murder in the gruesome 2021 death of a San Leandro man, the latest twist in a case against four people that largely hangs on her word.Mashonna Whittle, 35, was originally viewed by police and prosecutors as a witness in the death of 37-year-old Benjamin Hemmann, whose gagged and bound body was discovered along a Castro Valley roadway in September 2021. Whittle gave statements to police implicating her husband and two other men, then attempted to retract them, refused to testify at the preliminary hearing, and told her husband she wouldn’t take the stand during trial, according to police.Now, Whittle stands alongside three co-defendants — her husband, Kevin Woodruff, a friend named Brian Wu, and a third person, Steve Hanna, aka Richardo Onteveros — all facing charges of murdering Hemmann during a robbery. Hanna is accused of personally killing Hemmann by stranglin...