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Lakers star Anthony Davis agrees to highest annual salary in league history: report

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis has agreed to a contract extension with the team that will make him the highest-paid player per season, according to ESPN.Davis, 30, agreed to a three-year, $186 million extension that will keep him in L.A. through 2028, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.His annual salary — around $62 million — will be the highest in NBA history.Davis had two years and $84 million on his contract prior to the extension. He became eligible to be extended on Friday, Wojnarowski said.The former Kentucky Wildcat was drafted No. 1 overall in the 2012 NBA Draft. He spent seven seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans franchise before being traded to Los Angeles in one of the largest blockbuster deals in NBA history.The trade united Davis with LeBron James, pairing one of the sport's all-time greatest players with one of the league's most versatile big men. LeBron James becomes NBA’s all-time leading scorer In four seasons with the Lakers, Davis has averaged 24.6 p...

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's major act of kindness for UFC's Themba Gorimbo

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

Just when you think Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson couldn't be any nicer, he does this. The "Black Adam" star stepped up in a major way for a homeless UFC fighter. Johnson surprised Themba Gorimbo not only with his presence but with a major gift. Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson makes massive donation to SAG-AFTRA Foundation Gorimbo had been sleeping at the MMA Masters gym in Miami, Florida, which is where he trains. He had just $7 in his bank account until he won a recent fight that gained him about $7,000. He then sold some of his gear, and instead of finding a home, he used that money to buy a pump for his village back home in Zimbabwe to give them clean water. Dwayne Johnson arrives at the Oscars on March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)That story resonated with The Rock. He famously only had seven bucks when his dreams of playing professional football came to an end, and he decided to take up the family business, professional wrestling. He now owns...

3 killed in early-morning wrong-way collision in Palmdale

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

Three men are dead following a wrong-way collision in Palmdale early Friday morning.A 2017 Kia Sorento driven by a 41-year-old man from Long Beach was headed east on Pearblossom Highway at about 3:30 a.m. when "for unknown reasons" it crossed into the westbound lanes west of Valley Springs Road, striking a westbound 2023 Toyota Tacoma, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a news release. The Kia driver, a 60-year-old Victorville man who was a passenger in the Kia and the 37-year-old Littlerock man who was driving the pickup were all declared dead at the scene. The crash resulted in the closure of Pearblossom Highway between 25th and 37th streets until a few minutes before 11 a.m.The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to call 661-272-2400.

Trump pleads not guilty to new classified documents charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

By Tierney Sneed | CNNFormer President Donald Trump, in a court filing Friday, pleaded not guilty to the new charges special counsel Jack Smith brought against him in the case alleging mishandling of classified documents from his time in the White House.The filing marked the second time in 24 hours that the former president entered a not guilty plea, following his arraignment Thursday in the special counsel’s separate investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.Last week, Smith charged Trump, who had already faced 37 criminal charges in the classified documents case, with one additional count of willful retention of national defense information and two additional obstruction counts. He also filed new charges against Walt Nauta, the former president’s aide, and added Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira to the case.Trump and Nauta had pleaded not guilty to the initial charges earlier this summer.With the new fling, Trump indicated to the court that...

San Jose: Federal excessive force lawsuit from George Floyd protests is greenlit for trial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

SAN JOSE — An excessive force lawsuit against the San Jose Police Department and the city over officers’ violent tactics to break up downtown crowds protesting the police killing of George Floyd three years ago —  which elicited national notoriety and condemnation — will proceed to trial after a federal judge’s ruling Thursday.Among the five plaintiffs whose claims of First and Fourth Amendment violations were approved to go forward is Michael Acosta, a man who lived downtown and was passively watching the protests that started in late May 2020 when an officer shot him in the face with a hard foam projectile, causing him to lose an eye.Other plaintiffs allowed to eventually argue in front a federal civil jury include a woman shoved or jabbed with batons “at least seventeen times” by two officers, a woman hit by projectiles while observing the protests, a man shoved to the ground by police and who claims he was hit by multiple projectiles, and a man who ...

Greek zoo offers frozen treats to help animals beat the heat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

By Derek Gatopoulos | Associated PressSPATA, Greece — At first sight, Tiembe studies his frozen breakfast with hesitation: Chunks of red meat and bone packed in a foot-long block of ice.The 15-year-old Angolan lion eventually licks the ice before gnawing free pieces of meat.Animals at the Attica Zoological Park outside the Greek capital were being fed frozen meals Friday as temperatures around the country reached 40 C (107.5 F) and were set to rise further, in the fourth heat wave in less than a month.The extreme temperatures and wildfires — a growing concern for biodiversity in southern Europe — have had an impact on Greek wildlife.A fire on the island of Rhodes burned for 11 successive days, triggering the evacuation of 20,000 people, mostly tourists.The island’s animals were less fortunate.As the fire tore through mountain forests and a nature reserve, an estimated 2,500 animals and beehives were burned, along with 50,000 olive trees, according to Agriculture Ministry offic...

Inland Bay Area temperatures skyrocketing for brief weekend heatwave

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

Scientists say that July was the hottest recorded month in human history, and while it didn’t exactly feel that way in the Bay Area, portions of the region will get a taste of triple-digit temperatures on the first weekend of August, according to the National Weather Service.“Through the weekend, temperatures are warming up sharply,” said NWS meteorologist Rick Canepa. “(We’ll see) three days of warming up and then cooling returning next week.”Temperatures were forecast to rise the highest in inland cities out in Contra Costa County and other parts of the East Bay. On Saturday, highs in those areas include 96 degrees in Walnut Creek, 96 in Concord, 94 in Livermore and 90 in Dublin.On Sunday, those temperatures could clear triple digits with blistering days anticipated. NWS predictions included 98 in Walnut Creek, 101 in Concord, 98 in Livermore and 94 in Dublin.Other parts of the region anticipated warm but less stifling weekend numbers. Forecast ...

49ers QB Roll Call: Brock Purdy finds Deebo Samuel for scary touchdown

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

SANTA CLARA — Friday’s action at 49ers training camp saw all four quarterbacks participate in team drills, unlike the previous day when Brandon Allen got skunked on the snap count. Here is how they looked:BROCK PURDYEven after a 20-pass barrage marked his most extensive action of training camp, Brock Purdy wasn’t done. He retreated to the side field with the 49ers’ three other quarterbacks for extra-credit work, and, in Purdy’s case, that meant connecting with George Kittle on a couple of out routes.No pass weighed more in Friday’s two-hour session than when Purdy connected with Deebo Samuel on a 12-yard fade route for a touchdown at the end zone’s front, right pylon. Covered tightly by Charvarius Ward, Samuel landed hard on the ground, apparently on his right hip, which he rubbed after a few pregnant seconds of staying on the grass while concerned teammates rushed to his aid.Samuel threw the ball up in the air in apparent frustration after ...

Pac-12 survival: What’s next for Oregon State, Washington State, Stanford and Cal after mass exodus to Big Ten, Big 12

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

In the dead of summer, nuclear winter is coming for a handful of Pac-12 schools excluded from the vicious realignment game.USC, UCLA and Colorado have already given notice.Oregon and Washington are leaving for the Big Ten.Arizona, Arizona State and Utah are likely headed for the Big 12.The remaining quartet — Stanford, Cal, Washington State and Oregon State — is facing a Defcon 1 scenario.What are their options?Can they maintain competitive football and basketball programs without the massive revenue that comes with membership in a top conference?How will their Olympic sports and athletic department employees be impacted?First, the schools have a morsel of time to spare. The Pac-12 will remain intact through the upcoming academic year, with all 12 schools competing.More importantly, the money will keep flowing to each campus thanks to a media rights agreement with ESPN and Fox that remains intact until next summer.But as the situation stands, the Pac-12 likely will be reduced to the...

Why the Sharks’ ongoing Erik Karlsson situation could be clarified soon

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:39 GMT

SAN JOSE – The ongoing saga as to where San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson will play this upcoming season might be given some clarity in the next few days.The Pittsburgh Penguins, who have made clear their interest in acquiring Karlsson, had a second buyout window open after forward Drew O’Connor filed for arbitration early last month. The Penguins and O’Connor settled on a two-year, $1.85 million contract on Wednesday, leaving the team approximately $3.2 million over the NHL salary cap of $83.5 million for this upcoming season, per CapFriendly.According to collective bargaining agreement rules, a 48-hour second buyout window now opens up for the Penguins, starting on Saturday. That gives Penguins president and general manager Kyle Dubas the flexibility to buy out any player on his roster whose salary cap hit is at least $4 million, and forward Mikael Granlund’s deal – worth $5 million each of the next two seasons – could be in jeopardy.Buying out Granlund, 31, would save the ...