Sports Digest: NBA investigating why Joel Embiid missed 76ers’ opener

BASKETBALL

The NBA is investigating why Philadelphia center Joel Embiid did not play in the team’s nationally televised season opener against Milwaukee.

The league confirmed the investigation on Thursday. It was opened as part of the NBA’s player participation policy that went into effect last season.

Such a move was to be expected. The NBA has said that any time a star player misses a game – it defines “star” as someone who was an All-Star or All-NBA selection in any of the previous three seasons, and Embiid is one of those – an investigation can be opened to “promote compliance” with league rules and can include “independent medical review and related determinations regarding player availability.”

Embiid – who helped the U.S. win Olympic gold at the Paris Games – missed the entire preseason and was ruled out for Wednesday’s opener against Milwaukee with the 76ers citing “left knee injury management.” Embiid has a long history of injury issues, including knee problems.

• Atlanta Hawks guard Kobe Bufkin has partially dislocated his right shoulder for the second time.

Bufkin sustained a shoulder subluxation during practice last weekend and didn’t play in Atlanta’s 120-116 victory over Brooklyn to open the season.

• Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling, who was just the third female full-time official in NBA history when she was promoted to the staff in 2014, has stepped away from on-court work because of medical reasons. She dealt with knee issues – including three ACL tears, one of them as an NBA ref – for years, was limited to 15 games last season and finally decided that her long-term health was the priority.

COLLEGES

MEN’S BASKETBALL: South Florida coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, who led the Bulls to the American Athletic Conference’s regular-season championship a year ago, has died. He was 43.

The school said he died from complications that presented while he was undergoing a procedure at a Tampa-area hospital.

Abdur-Rahim was a rising star in the coaching world. He went 19-65 in his first three seasons at Kennesaw State but enjoyed great success over the next two seasons. His 2022-23 team at Kennesaw State went 26-9 and made the NCAA Tournament, earning him the shot to coach at USF.

He was an immediate success with the Bulls. USF went 25-8 last season, won the AAC regular-season title and won a game in the NIT. Abdur-Rahim was the unanimous pick as the AAC’s coach of the year.

HOCKEY

NHL: The Vegas Golden Knights made defenseman Shea Theodore their highest-paid player, signing him to a seven-year contract worth an average of $7.425 million per year.

Theodore’s deal is valued just above fellow blueliner Noah Hanifin’s $7.35 million. Hanifin signed an eight-year extension in April, about a month after being acquired from the Calgary Flames.

The 29-year-old Theodore is in his eighth season with the Golden Knights. He leads Vegas defensemen with seven points through six games and is the franchise all-time leader among that group with 296 points. Theodore is plus-65 for his career in Vegas.

FOOTBALL

NFL: Denver Broncos wide receiver Josh Reynolds is recovering from two gunshot wounds after he and another man were fired upon following a visit to a strip club last week.

“Josh Reynolds was a victim of a shooting on Friday in Denver and received treatment for minor injuries,” the Broncos said in a statement to The Associated Press. “Out of respect for the legal process, we will defer further comment on this matter to the authorities.”

Denver police said they have arrested two men – Luis Mendoza, 35, and Burr Charlesworth, 42 – in connection with the shootings, which occurred around 3 a.m. on Oct. 18 along a stretch of Interstate 25 south of downtown.

SOCCER

MLS: Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi earned more than the entire payrolls of 22 other Major League Soccer teams, and Olivier Giroud has $3,675,000 in annualized total compensation under the contract he signed to join Los Angeles FC in July.

The Major League Soccer Players Association released its salary update and Messi’s $12 million base salary and $20,446,667 in total compensation from Inter Miami remained the same as in the initial listing in May.

Those figures cover what Messi receives from his MLS deal, which runs through the 2025 season, including any marketing bonus and agent’s fees. They do not account for any additional agreements with the team or its affiliates, or for any performance bonuses.

Average guaranteed compensation rose 9.8% to $596,226 from $543,207.

• No surprise here: Messi is among the finalists for Major League Soccer’s MVP award for this season.

In addition to Messi, Inter Miami teammate Luis Suarez is among five finalists for the Landon Donovan MLS MVP. The others include Evander from the Portland Timbers, Cucho Hernandez of the Columbus Crew and D.C. United’s Christian Benteke, who also won this season’s Golden Boot for most goals.

Inter Miami finished the season atop the Eastern Conference standings at 22-4-8 with an MLS-record 74 points, winning the Supporters Shield for best regular-season record.

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