logo
Jonquel Jones returns to the Liberty lineup, leads team scoring in win over Fever

Jonquel Jones returns to the Liberty lineup, leads team scoring in win over Fever

Yahoo5 days ago
NEW YORK (AP) — During the Liberty's lineup announcement Tuesday night, one name brought the Barclays Center crowd to its feet: Jonquel Jones. She held up a heart to the crowd.
In the words of head coach Sandy Brondello — 'It's a happy day. JJ's back.'
The Liberty star center officially returned to the court in New York's 98-84 win over the Fever on Tuesday night. Jones, last season's WNBA Finals MVP, was playing for the first time since June 19 with an ankle injury and scored a team-high 18 points.
'It felt great to be back out there,' Jones said after the game. 'Obviously, it's been a while since I've been on the court, but my teammates have held it down while I was out, and everybody was excited for me to be back in. And I was just as excited.'
Jones, the Liberty's third-highest scorer, has averaged 12.1 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists this season, while shooting 43.8 percent from behind the arc. New York struggled in her absence, going 5-4 after starting out the season 9-0. They are undefeated with Jones on the court.
It's been a touch-and-go season for Jones so far. She'd been limited to just 10 games this season, initially injuring her ankle in early June and taking a brief absence before returning and aggravating the injury.
___
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Mets Reportedly Have These Two Outfielders On Trade Radar
Mets Reportedly Have These Two Outfielders On Trade Radar

Newsweek

timea few seconds ago

  • Newsweek

Mets Reportedly Have These Two Outfielders On Trade Radar

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The New York Mets have been among the more aggressive teams in recent years, and as the trade deadline approaches, New York sounds like it's in on just about everything in an attempt to take the next step. The Mets entered the day in a dead heat with the Philadelphia Phillies atop the National League East. One year removed from going to the NL Championship Series, the Mets are trying to add again, even after owner Steve Cohen splashed the pot in the offeason by signing Juan Soto. And even with Soto patrolling the Citi Field outfield, it sounds like New York is working to add another impact player to the outfield before Thursday's deadline. ESPN's Jesse Rogers believes the Mets are keeping close tabs of two outfielders currently on bad teams. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JUNE 24: Luis Robert Jr. #88 of the Chicago White Sox swings the bat in the fifth inning during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Rate Field on June 24, 2025... CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JUNE 24: Luis Robert Jr. #88 of the Chicago White Sox swings the bat in the fifth inning during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Rate Field on June 24, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by) More The Mets are "keeping an eye on" both Baltimore's Cedric Mullins and White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr., Rogers wrote for trade tracker. Reading between the lines, it sounds like Robert might be the priority, but a recent groin injury has complicated the situation some. "Before getting hurt, he was easily having the best month of any over the past two seasons, hitting .351 with a .442 OBP in July," Rogers wrote. "The White Sox have been waiting for an increase in prospect capital to move forward on a deal. It's possible they finally get it this week, but they could always pick up the option in his contract this offseason and do this all over again next year. Robert's production this month has teams intrigued." Landing Robert might cost the Mets third baseman Mark Vientos, according to one report. At this point, New York might jump at that given Vientos' struggles, and it might become even more likely if they could also swing a Eugenio Suarez trade. There's nothing specific about Mullins in the capsule, but the Orioles outfielder is a decent Plan B. He's a left-handed batter (Robert hits from the right) who's having a down year. He's a former top prospect who does have a Silver Slugger to his name after a career season in 2021 when he had 175 hits -- 30 of them home runs -- and was a six-win player for the Orioles. He's been a pretty reliable player for most of his career, but like a lot of O's, he's having a bad season this season. Maybe a change of scenery would get Mullins back on chance. More MLB: Red Sox Make Jarren Duran Trade Decision Ahead of Deadline: Report

First-round pick Shemar Stewart has plenty of learning moments during his initial Bengals' practice
First-round pick Shemar Stewart has plenty of learning moments during his initial Bengals' practice

Associated Press

timea few seconds ago

  • Associated Press

First-round pick Shemar Stewart has plenty of learning moments during his initial Bengals' practice

CINCINNATI (AP) — One day after signing his rookie contact, Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Shemar Stewart took the field for his first NFL practice on Sunday. While Stewart was the final Bengals' draft pick to sign and criticized ownership while the negotiations were going on, coach Zac Taylor said that the organization can leave all of that contention in the past. 'That's part of being a professional,' Taylor said. 'Just put it behind you. He's a part of our team, so we support him every step of the way now. You just put all that stuff behind you.' Stewart missed three practices before signing his rookie deal, and he also didn't participate in any of the Bengals' spring workouts. On Sunday, he went through some extra sets of drills with one-on-one instruction from defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery, was a full participant in position drills and then received about 10 reps in full-team drills against the first-team offense. 'I just needed to get on the field as soon as possible,' Stewart said. 'I needed to start learning, start getting better. There is a long season ahead. I needed to be ready.' He said that he didn't have any regrets about the negotiation process. Stewart also defended his agent, Zac Hiller. Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin criticized Hiller last week by saying that Stewart was listening to the advice that he was paying for. Stewart said that he appreciated Hiller's approach in negotiations. Stewart's four-year deal is worth $18.97 million guaranteed, including a $10.4 million signing bonus. Stewart, the 17th overall pick in April's draft, and Hiller eventually agreed to the Bengals' provision voiding future guarantees if there are any off-field incidents or conduct detrimental to the team. However, he received $500,000 more of his signing bonus now instead of later in the season. 'I want an agent that's more of a pit bull,' Stewart said. 'I don't want an agent that can easily be pushed over. I want someone that's going to war (for) me, so I don't have to do any of the hard work behind the scenes. In terms of that, I think Zac is a great agent. He handles business very well. That's my dog for life.' On the field, Stewart struggled with the heat as well as the new techniques from the Bengals coaching staff. At one point during practice, he poured water over his eyes only to find out that it was Gatorade. That stung his eyes, and he joked about it being a learning moment. During his first practice rep against offensive linemen, he got pushed back and spun around. That was another learning moment. 'Just get him out here and get him going with our fundamentals and with Jerry and all the things we're teaching,' Taylor said. 'Tomorrow we get the chance to put the pads on, to get a chance to feel what that feels like again. It's just good to go full speed with him.' Stewart said that he hopes this week was a start of a long Bengals' career, and he's focused on the long game now that his contract has been signed. 'It was never me vs. anybody,' Stewart said. 'We just didn't see eye to eye. At the end of the day, I'm happy to be a Bengal. I'm happy that I got drafted here. We have a long relationship ahead of us. There's no bad blood. It's just how things go sometimes.' ___ AP NFL:

From hoops to Hall of Fame: Antonio Gates' unique NFL journey to Canton
From hoops to Hall of Fame: Antonio Gates' unique NFL journey to Canton

Yahoo

time28 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

From hoops to Hall of Fame: Antonio Gates' unique NFL journey to Canton

Antonio Gates thought his path to a Hall of Fame career would have been in basketball. Instead, he became one of the best tight ends in NFL history. Gates will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, getting elected to Canton without playing college football. He played his entire 16-year career for the Bolts and finished with 116 receiving touchdowns, the most by a tight end in NFL history. 'My journey was probably the most unique journey in all of football because I came in as a former basketball player, not knowing what to expect,' Gates said. 'Some of those guys who are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, they wanted to be Pro Football Hall of Famers when they were 14 years old. I wanted to play in the NBA. That was my dream. Like I said, I still haven't wrapped my head around it all.' Gates played both football and basketball during high school at Detroit Central. Nick Saban recruited Gates to play football at Michigan State, but he didn't play as a freshman. Gates also wanted to play basketball, but Saban disagreed. Gates transferred to Eastern Michigan, then to two junior colleges, and eventually to Kent State. It was at Kent State that Gates reached national prominence. He led the Golden Flashes to the Elite Eight in the 2002 NCAA Tournament as a junior and an Associated Press All-America honorable mention selection as a senior after averaging 20.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Even though Gates was convinced he would get drafted in the NBA, at 6-foot-4, scouts saw him as an undersized post player. However, Tim Brewster, who was the Chargers' tight ends coach in 2003, saw in Gates the size and speed that he thought would make him a great tight end. Brewster saw Gates during a private workout and immediately began making his pitch to Marty Schottenheimer and the Chargers' front office to sign him as a free agent. 'A lot of people like to take credit, but Tim is the number one reason why I am in the Hall of Fame,' Gates said. 'He found me, believed what I could become, and was around me constantly. He really got me into a position where I look up, and I was All-Pro my second year in the field.' After having 24 receptions for 389 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie, Gates had a career-high 13 touchdowns in 2004 en route to the first of three straight Associated Press All-Pro honors and eight consecutive trips to the Pro Bowl. He also had 81 catches for 964 yards. Even though he was catching a lot of passes, Gates' route-running didn't always get high marks from coaches. 'What I was doing as a rookie and in my second year was considered nontraditional. I would play well, but grade out bad because I creating a lane. And unfortunately, when you're creating something that's never been done or seen, it gets scrutinized. I would use my instinct to make the play.' Many of the things that Gates did with shape routes, pivot routes over the ball and tight ends releasing at the line of scrimmage are commonplace today with Kansas City's Travis Kelce and San Francisco's George Kittle. Gates utilized his basketball skills on the football field, as catching the ball at its highest point is similar to rebounding in the paint, as well as boxing out on the hardwood and trying to get open against a defensive back. Gates might have been outsized as a power forward, but he had an advantage going up against defensive backs who often were smaller than he was. Gates' career flourished under Norv Turner, the Chargers coach from 2007 through '12. Turner lined Gates up in different spots and also used more two tight end sets. Gates' route-running also improved under Turner and with Philip Rivers as the quarterback. 'He had to win on his route-running and his ability to separate and his understanding of coverages and all those things. Philip is as good a passer as there's been in a long time, but Philip wasn't going to move around and make a lot of plays off schedule,' Turner said. Gates finished with 955 receptions for 11,841 yards. He had 21 multi-touchdown games, the most among tight ends. Of his 116 touchdowns, 39 came on third down, which is tied for third all time. He had eight seasons with at least eight touchdowns and was a member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s. Gates said the biggest thing he is looking forward to is being able to thank the people who helped him get to Canton. 'I've always been in a space where from a popularity standpoint, people know my name. It's my chance to thank everyone else,' he said. 'Although you are the face and the focus point, it's truly not about you. You're letting everybody understand what it took to get to this point and who were influential.' ___ AP NFL:

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store