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Can USA Basketball mend fences with Tatum, get younger for L.A. 2028?

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Can USA Basketball mend fences with Tatum, get younger for L.A. 2028?

PARIS — Jayson Tatum stood in the arena loading dock Saturday night, an Olympic gold medal draped around his neck and untold bottles of champagne waiting for him, answering questions about his personal disappointment and his mom coming to his defense on social media.

This should have been, and in many ways still was, the Summer of Tatum. His first NBA championship with the Boston Celtics. A $314-million contract extension. The birth of his second child. And yes, a second gold medal in as many Olympics, this time as a member of arguably the greatest team ever assembled.

But Tatum’s role on the fringe of Team USA’s rotation was not one he’s used to, or was prepared for, and the two games he didn’t play in during the Americans’ run to gold made for huge news and hot debate back home.

“I keep trying to say, I’m trying not to make it about me, all the storylines over the last few days — we won,” Tatum said after the Americans’ 98-87 triumph over France, in which Tatum did play and contributed two points and three rebounds in 11 minutes. “We won a gold medal, and that was most important.”

Because they won, the debate is moot. History will judge U.S. coach Steve Kerr favorably for managing this team as he did, for riding Devin Booker as a starter over Tatum, for using Derrick White as a point-of-attack defender off the bench until the Americans played France, when Tatum’s length was more valuable to the team than what White brought as a defense-first guard.

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Had the Americans lost at any point this summer, and especially in the medal rounds, with Tatum on the bench, then yes, Kerr and Team USA’s executives would have been crushed with criticism for not finding a bigger role for someone who has been a first-team All-NBA selection three years in a row.

But they didn’t lose, so the arguments and the takes no longer matter. What is important, vitally important, for U.S. men’s basketball now, though, is how Tatum feels. Because the program still needs him and will need him.

“It was a tough personal experience on the court, but I’m not going to be making any decision off emotions,” Tatum said. “If you asked me right now if I was going to play in 2028, it is four years from now, and I would have to take time and think about that. So I’m not going to make any decision based off how this experience was or how I felt individually.”


After a lot of time spent on the bench in Paris, Jayson Tatum isn’t sure about L.A. in 2028. “I’m not going to be making any decision off emotions,” he said. (Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)

The U.S. has now won five consecutive men’s basketball gold medals. They all count, but this one felt bigger in terms of importance because of the team the Americans sent to Paris. The names and the resumes belonging to LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid, to say nothing of the other eight stars, including Tatum, drew constant comparisons to the Dream Team of 1992. If this team couldn’t win, what would that say about the state of USA Basketball moving forward?

Thanks to the heroics of the Americans’ three elder statesmen, no one had to answer that question. But the team the U.S. fields four summers from now, when the Games are on American soil in Los Angeles, will be influenced greatly by the experience of this summer.

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Whether it was the choice made by USA executives to go all in on All-Stars, instead of sprinkling in more role players, or how the players who could return to the team in 2028 feel about the journey they just completed, the next chapter of American basketball on the international stage will be written based in large part on the chapter that finished so gloriously late Saturday night in the City of Light.

“You can’t keep everyone happy,” USA managing director Grant Hill — who won a gold medal as a player in 1996 — said in a recent interview with The Athletic. “But I think you win a gold medal and everyone feels like they contributed. I think people will come out of this with a positive outlook on the entire experience.

“And, you know, we’ll have to revamp and figure things out in four years.”

As Hill said in that interview, which was first published Friday, the team was constructed with 11 All-Stars (12, if you count Kawhi Leonard before he was replaced by Derrick White) in part because of the versatility of the top teams in the world, but also in case James, Curry or Durant couldn’t play at the highest level.

James will be 43 in 2028. He said Saturday he did not expect to play for Team USA at the Los Angeles Games. Curry will be 40, and while he left himself room to change his mind — “never say never” is what he said — he suggested Paris would be his first and only Olympics. Durant will be 39 and has battled injuries the last few years, but he could easily decide he wants to be the men’s version of Diana Taurasi or Sue Bird and go for a fifth Olympic gold.

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Even if Durant were healthy enough to sign up for another Olympic tour, he would not likely be the alpha, dominant player he’s been in his first four Games. Jrue Holiday will be 38 in 2028; he is probably finished after two gold medals. Anthony Davis will be 35 in 2028 and White, who will be 34, could be back, but it would depend in part on Davis’ interest and also what kind of team the Americans want to build.

The U.S. would love to get another Olympics out of Embiid, whom Hill successfully recruited away from France through occasional, low-pressure, open-ended discussions while the French demanded Embiid make good on the passport he asked for by playing for Les Bleus.

But when asked what he thought of his first Olympics, and if he might be interested in another go when he’ll be 34 in 2028, Embiid said, “It’s been a grind.

“That’s one thing I’ll say being gone for a few weeks away from family, away from home,” Embiid said. “But then again, I think being with Team USA, the group of guys that we have, the people around has made it easy to just enjoy it. And then Paris is a great city too, and then the next one is in LA. We’ll see. I don’t know, maybe it might not be with Team USA, maybe it might be with Cameroon, so we’ll see.”

Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid spent most of these two weeks being chided by French fans for choosing to play for the U.S. “It’s been a grind,” he said Saturday. (Harry Langer / DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

Embiid, born in Cameroon, could not play for his native country without releases from both FIBA and USA Basketball, since he played for the Americans this summer.

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Bam Adebayo is a two-time Olympic gold medalist. He will be 31 in 2028, but his coach for the Miami Heat, Erik Spoelstra, could well be the next coach for Team USA (Kerr has said he will step down from his role after the Paris Games). Spoelstra served as an assistant to Kerr on this year’s team.

“A lot of people don’t get these opportunities, one, to be able to compete for your country, and two, to be able to win a gold medal,” Adebayo said. “So just having both of those in mind, you can’t pass on an opportunity like this.”

Booker, like Adebayo and Tatum, is a veteran of the last two Olympics and will be 31 for the Los Angeles Games. Booker took on a “lesser” role with Team USA, insofar as he elected to defend, rebound and do the dirty work until open shots came to him (he is, of course, a prolific scorer for the Suns). By thriving in what was asked of him, Booker started every game at the Paris Olympics.

“Devin Booker is an incredible basketball player,” Kerr said. “He was our unsung MVP — I just wanted to say that.”

If anyone has positive feelings about a return for the next Olympics, it would be Booker.

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Roster building for most countries is a more singular, holistic approach of building a national team that plays in all the high-profile tournaments, including Olympics and FIBA World Cups — which now are held the year before the Olympics.

The problem for Hill and USA Basketball is most American NBA superstars have decided they do not want to play consecutive summers. So, for the time being, Hill will likely have to piece together rosters of younger rising stars for the 2027 World Cup in Qatar, and then decide who among those players he can elevate to the Olympic team with more established stars.

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Anthony Edwards was Team USA’s youngest player at 22 this summer. He came off Kerr’s bench and enjoyed some huge scoring games at the Olympics, including his 26 points against Puerto Rico. He has said he is interested in more Olympic experiences for the U.S., but no more World Cups.

“Hell nah,” Edwards said, when asked if he would consider a second appearance at a World Cup.

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Tyrese Haliburton is only 24, and he and Edwards were the lone players asked to play at the Olympics from the 2023 World Cup team that finished fourth in the Philippines. But unlike Edwards, Haliburton played the fewest minutes of anyone this summer, with “DNP–coach’s decision” next to his name in four games.

Haliburton came into the Olympic run aware that his role would be reduced from what it was in 2023, when he set a U.S. record for assists at a World Cup, but Haliburton’s playing time nose-dived once White joined the team.

Paolo Banchero, another member of USA’s last World Cup team, was under serious consideration for the Paris Olympics and is a player Hill wants to feature in Olympiads to come.

Jaylen Brown, a superstar on the Boston Celtics whose only experience on the national team was in 2019 at the World Cup in China, felt snubbed by not making the 2024 Olympic team either as an original member or as a replacement for Leonard. He was openly critical of being left off the roster on social media. Hill told All the Smoke’s “Open Run” with Rachel Nichols last week that Brown “will be a candidate in ’28 if he wants in.”

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“Oh yeah,” Hill said. “One thing I’ve learned. You can’t take anything personal in this role. And so, I haven’t personalized anything. My goal, my objective is to win. As soon as … that happens, we pivot and start looking ahead to the future.”

And of course, there are any number of current NBA stars, or borderline stars, or future stars who could be a great fit for Team USA in 2028. Perhaps even a player who is not yet in the NBA, like Cooper Flagg, who is headed for his first and likely only season at Duke before turning pro.

What is certain is the pressure to win at home will be great, and will come with enormous challenges from the world’s other top teams — including France.

The French have narrowly lost the last two gold-medal games to the United States. Victor Wembanyama is only 20, and the San Antonio Spurs superstar was dominant against the Americans Saturday with 26 points and as a presence on defense. Four Frenchmen were drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft last June.

Zaccharie Risacher went No. 1 to the Atlanta Hawks, and the Washington Wizards selected 7-footer Alex Sarr with the second pick. The Charlotte Hornets drafted forward Tidjane Salaün at No. 6, and Pacôme Dadiet was selected 25th by the New York Knicks. None of the four were on the French national team this summer, but it’s likely all could join Wembanyama and the Washington Wizards’ Bilal Coulibaly as young, upcoming NBA players (stars?) at the next World Cup and Olympics.

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Les Bleus are just one example, although maybe the best one, of how hard it’s going to be for the Americans to keep winning gold medals every four years, regardless of who is on the roster.

“I’m learning, and I’m worried for the opponents in a couple years,” Wembanyama said Saturday, a silver medal dangling from his neck, not far from where Tatum was standing.

Asked if he meant he was “worried” for opponents in the NBA, or on the international stage, Wemby said: “Everywhere.”

Including Los Angeles, in four years.

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(Top photo of Bam Adebayo, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid and LeBron James celebrating Saturday’s win: Harry Langer / DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

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Brooke Slusser sparks liberal social media meltdown by speaking about SJSU transgender volleyball scandal

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Brooke Slusser sparks liberal social media meltdown by speaking about SJSU transgender volleyball scandal

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Left-wing social media users launched a volley of insults at 23-year-old Brooke Slusser in recent days.

In response, dozens of high-profile women’s rights activists have come to the former San Jose State University volleyball player’s defense.

Slusser has addressed the critics herself in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

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“I would just say people that don’t know my life or my trauma don’t have room to say how good or bad my time at SJSU was. I hope they never have to understand going through something as awful as that,” she said.

She has also acknowledged the responses in a series of TikTok posts, as she has become more active on the platform this week to speak about her alleged experience at SJSU. 

The online hate campaign started after Slusser shared details about living arrangements in the same apartment with transgender volleyball teammate Blaire Fleming while at San Jose State university, in an interview with Fox News Digital. 

During the interview, she said, “You find out you’re just chilling in a bed with a man that you have no idea about… I [was] unknowingly sharing a bed at that time with a man,” and alleged SJSU volleyball coach Todd Kress encouraged her to live in the same apartment as the trans teammate when another group of players were also looking for a final tenant. 

The fallout of the interview has prompted high-profile activists, lawmakers and even an actor to speak out, taking a side behind or against Slusser.

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Many critics echoed the sentiment that “nothing bad” happened to Slusser, despite the fact that the anxiety from the situation ultimately led to her developing an eating disorder and not being able to complete her college degree. 

Former “Glee” actor Kevin McHale even appeared to mock Slusser’s appearance. 

A coalition of “save women’s sports” activists rushed to Slusser’s defense, with OutKick host Riley Gaines, XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., women’s tennis legend Martina Navratilova and former ESPN star Sage Steele leading the charge to defend Slusser from the pro-trans detractors. 

“Brooke has every right to feel violated. This is a violation of her personal space and boundaries. She was lied to. She would not have agreed to room with or play with a man,” Sey wrote in response to one critic. 

Navratilova wrote in response to that same critic, “Brooke has every right to be mad. Try again with the punishment wish…”

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Slusser finds herself at the center of a sports culture war flashpoint at a time when the conflict over her school’s handling of her transgender former teammate has reached a political impasse. 

‘HORRIBLE’ MOMENTS EXPOSED FOR UNR VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS WHEN THEY WERE ROPED INTO THE SJSU TITLE IX SCANDAL

After the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) announced at the end of January that an investigation into the university for its handling of a trans athlete and other players concluded that the school violated Title IX, SJSU and the California State University system declined to resolve the violation. 

Instead, SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson announced Friday that the school and the California State University (CSU) system are suing the federal government to challenge the investigation. 

“Because we believe OCR’s findings aren’t grounded in the facts or the law, SJSU and the CSU filed a lawsuit today against the federal government to challenge those findings and prevent the federal government from taking punitive action against the university, including the potential withholding of critical federal funding,” Teniente-Matson said Friday.

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“This is not a step we take lightly. However, we have a responsibility to defend the integrity of our institution and the rule of law, while ensuring that every member of our community is treated fairly and in accordance with the law. Our position is simple: We have followed the law and cannot be punished for doing so.”

The school is also requesting that OCR rescind its findings and close its investigation. 

Teniente-Matson affirmed the university’s commitment to defending the LGBTQ community in the announcement.

“Our support for the LGBTQ members of our community, who have experienced threats and harms over the last several years, remains unwavering. We know the attention the university has received around this issue and the investigative process that followed have been unsettling for many in our community,” the university president said.

Among ED’s findings, it determined that a female athlete discovered that the trans student allegedly conspired to have a member of an opposing team spike her in the face during a match. The department claims “SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but later subjected the female athlete to a Title IX complaint for ‘misgendering’ the male athlete in online videos and interviews.”

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Slusser alleged in a November 2024 lawsuit against the Mountain West that she and former assistant coach Melissa Batie-Smoose were made aware of a meeting between Fleming and Colorado State women’s volleyball player Malaya Jones on Oct. 2, 2024, during which Fleming discussed a plan with Jones to have Slusser spiked in the face during a match the following night.

Slusser’s own lawsuit partially survived motions to dismiss last week as well. 

Colorado District Judge Kato Crews dismissed all the plaintiffs’ charges against the Mountain West Conference but did not dismiss charges of Title IX violations against the CSU system. 

Crews deferred his ruling on whether to dismiss those charges until after a decision in the ongoing B.P.J. v. West Virginia Supreme Court case, which is expected in June.

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Brooke Slusser #10 and Blaire Fleming #3 of the San Jose State Spartans call a play during the first set against the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Court at East Gym on October 19, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

The CSU provided a statement to Fox News Digital in response to Crews’ ruling. 

“CSU is pleased with the court’s ruling. SJSU has complied with Title IX and all applicable law, and it will continue to do so,” the statement said.

The outcomes of the lawsuits by and against SJSU on this issue could ultimately set a consequential precedent for the future of women’s sports in America. 

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

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Jessica Pegula’s commitment to hard work every day has turned her into a leader

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Jessica Pegula’s commitment to hard work every day has turned her into a leader

Jessica Pegula never needed tennis.

She simply kept showing up for it anyway, through the long and often anonymous slog of the professional tour.

Now 32 and the oldest player in the top 10, Pegula is having her best season start yet.

The fifth-ranked American reached the Australian Open semifinals for the first time in January, falling to eventual champion Elena Rybakina. She followed that by capturing the Dubai 1000-level tournament, just a rung below the majors.

She is 15-2 so far in 2026, tied with Victoria Mboko in match wins and second only to Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina (17-3), who she defeated 6-2, 6-4 in the Dubai final.

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Pegula is guaranteed to emerge from this week’s BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells as the top-ranked American, overtaking No. 4 Coco Gauff, if she reaches the final.

Jessica Pegula kisses the Dubai trophy after defeating Elina Svitolina in the finals on Feb. 21.

(Altaf Qadri / Associated Press)

First, she will have to get past No. 12-seed Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, her fourth-round opponent on Wednesday. Bencic has not dropped a set in four previous meetings with Pegula.

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“That will be a challenge for me,” said the characteristically even-keeled Pegula after defeating former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the third round on Monday.

A late bloomer, Pegula has taken the long road.

She failed to qualify for Grand Slam main draws in 12 of 14 attempts from 2011 to 2018, and didn’t reach the third round at a major until the 2020 U.S. Open at age 26. All three of her Grand Slam semifinal runs — along with her 2024 U.S. Open final — have come after she turned 30.

Pegula said this week that her patience and persistence stem from “always being a little more mature for my age even when I was younger.”

“I think as I’ve gotten older, your perspective changes as well,” she added.

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Pegula, whose parents are principal owners of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, acknowledges that her wealthy family background can cut two ways.

Financial security offers freedom to push through the sport’s early years on tour, when results are uncertain and the grind is relentless. That same cushion might make it easier to walk away if the climb becomes too frustrating.

Jessica Pegula plays a backhand against Donna Vekic during their match at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

Jessica Pegula plays a backhand against Donna Vekic during their match at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

(Clive Brunskill / Getty Images)

Pegula says her motivation to pursue tennis came well before her family’s fortune grew.

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“I’ve been wanting to be a professional tennis player and No. 1 in the world since I was like 7,” she said in a small interview room after beating Ostapenko this week.

“It’s a privilege, but at the same time I don’t want to do myself a disservice of not taking the opportunity as well,” she explained. “I’ve always looked at it that way.”

In the last few seasons, that maturity on the court has dovetailed with a growing leadership role off it.

Pegula has served for years on the WTA Player Council and was recently tapped to chair the tour’s new Tour Architecture Council, a working group tasked with examining the increasingly demanding schedule and structural pressures players say have intensified in recent seasons. The panel is expected to explore changes that could reshape the calendar and player workload in coming years.

Pegula said she hadn’t put up her hand to be involved but agreed after several players approached her to take the lead role — though she declined to say who they were.

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“I think maybe as you mature … you realize how important it is to give back to the sport,” she said last week.

Life has also provided grounding and a wider lens.

Pegula’s mother, Kim, suffered a serious cardiac arrest in 2022, a situation she discussed in detail in a moving 2023 essay for “The Players’ Tribune.”

The Buffalo native and Florida resident also married businessman Taylor Gahagen in 2021. Gahagen helps “holds down the fort” at home with the couple’s dogs and travels with her when possible. He is with her in Indian Wells.

“I have an amazing support system,” Pegula says.

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Despite winning 10 WTA singles titles, achieving a career singles high of No. 3 in 2022 and the No. 1 doubles ranking, Pegula’s low-key demeanor means she flies a bit under the radar.

She’s not one for fashion statements, outlandish antics or attention-seeking initiatives, her joint podcast with close friend Madison Keys notwithstanding.

Instead, Pegula tends to go about her business quietly, relying on a calm temperament and a methodical style that wears opponents down over time.

She gets the job done — the Tim Duncan of the women’s tour.

“She’s just all about lacing them up and competing between the lines, and then trying to be as big an asset as she can to her peers off the court,” says Mark Knowles, the former doubles standout who has shared coaching duties with Mark Merklein since early 2024.

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“I think one of her great attributes is she’s very level-headed,” Knowles adds. “She doesn’t get too high, doesn’t get too low.”

Her tennis identity echoes her steadiness.

Instead of bludgeoning opponents with power, the 5-foot-7 Pegula beats them with savvy, steadiness and tactical variety. A careful student of the game, she studies matchups and patrols the court with a composed efficiency that incrementally drains big hitters and outmaneuvers most rivals long before the final score confirms it.

Keys calls that consistency her “superpower.”

“She doesn’t lose matches that she shouldn’t lose,” the 2025 Australian Open champion said this week.

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Because of injuries in the early part of her career, Knowles says Pegula might have less wear-and-tear than other players her age. And he and her team have prioritized rest and recovery, which included the decision to skip the tournament in Doha last month following her tiring Australian Open run.

On brand, there was no panic in Pegula after dropping the first set in her two matches so far at Indian Wells. As she’s done all season, she steadied herself to earn three-set wins.

Bucket-list goals remain, however. Chiefly, capturing a Grand Slam title.

Jessica Pegula returns a shot to Jelena Ostapenko during the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Monday.

Jessica Pegula returns a shot to Jelena Ostapenko during the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Monday.

(Matthew Stockman / Getty Images)

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Pegula jokes that she briefly interrupted a run of American female success when she fell in the 2024 U.S. Open final to No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. But seeing close friend and teenage phenom Keys capture her major in Melbourne last year — after many wondered if her window had passed — hit closer to home.

“I think Madison winning Australia just motivated me even more,” Pegula says.

Although Pegula believes she is among the best hardcourt players in women’s tennis, that confidence hasn’t translated into success in the California desert. She has reached the quarterfinals just once in 10 previous appearances in Indian Wells.

“Why not try and add that one to the resume?” says Knowles, noting that she had never won the title in Dubai until last month. “She’s playing still at a very high level.”

Pegula says the key to keeping things fresh is maintaining her love of the game by continuing to improve and experiment with new ideas, a process that keeps her engaged mentally and eager to compete.

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“I’m not afraid to kind of take that risk of changing and working on different things,” she says, “which just keeps my mind working and problem solving.”

For a player who never needed tennis, she remains determined to see how much more it can give her.

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Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo makes NBA history with 83-point game

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Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo makes NBA history with 83-point game

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Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo made NBA history on Tuesday night.

Adebayo scored 83 points, all while setting league marks for free throws made and attempted in a game for the Miami Heat in a 150-129 win over the Washington Wizards. It is the second-highest scoring game for a player ever, only to Wilt Chamberlain’s famed 100-point game.

“An absolutely surreal night,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters after the game.

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Adebayo started with a 31-point first quarter. He was up to 43 at halftime, 62 by the end of the third quarter. And then came the fourth, when the milestones kept falling despite facing double-, triple- and what once appeared to be a quadruple-team from a Wizards defense that kept sending him to the foul line.

He finished 20 of 43 from the field, 36 of 43 from the foul line, 7 for 22 from 3-point range.

After the game, he was seen in tears while he hugged his mother, Marilyn Blount, before leaving the floor after the game.

“Welp won’t have the highest career high in the house anymore,” Adebayo’s girlfriend, four-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, wrote on social media, “but at least it gives me something to go after.”

MAGIC’S ANTHONY BLACK MAKES INCREDIBLE DUNK OVER FOUR DEFENDERS IN HISTORIC NBA GAME

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Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat celebrates during the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Kaseya Center on March 10, 2026, in Miami, Florida.  (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

The NBA’s previous best this season was 56, by Nikola Jokic for Denver against Minnesota on Christmas night. The last player to have 62 points through three quarters: one of Adebayo’s basketball heroes, Kobe Bryant, who had exactly that many through three quarters for the Los Angeles Lakers against Dallas on Dec. 20, 2005.

He wound up passing Bryant for single-game scoring as well. Bryant’s career-best was 81 — a game that was the second-best on the NBA scoring list for two decades.

Adebayo scored 31 points in the opening quarter against the Wizards, breaking the Heat record for points in any quarter — and tying the team record for points in a first half before the second quarter even started.

He finished the first half with 43 points, a team record for any half and two points better than his previous career high — for a full game, that is — of 41, set Jan. 23, 2021, against Brooklyn.

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Adebayo’s season high entering Tuesday was 32. He matched that with a free throw with 5:53 left in the second quarter, breaking the Heat first-half scoring record.

Adebayo’s 43-point first half was the NBA’s second-best in at least the last 30 seasons — going back to the start of the digital play-by-play era that began in the 1996-97 season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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