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Alex Rodriguez and Billionaire Marc Lore near Deal for NBA’s Timberwolves

Alex Rodriguez, above, and billionaire Marc Lore appear to be close to owning the Minnesota Timberwolves. Photograph: Thomas Lovelock/MLB Photos via Getty Images
Alex Rodriguez, above, and billionaire Marc Lore appear to be close to owning the Minnesota Timberwolves. Photograph: Thomas Lovelock/MLB Photos via Getty Images
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Alex Rodriguez and Billionaire Marc Lore near Deal for NBA’s Timberwolves

Alex Rodriguez, above, and billionaire Marc Lore appear to be close to owning the Minnesota Timberwolves. Photograph: Thomas Lovelock/MLB Photos via Getty Images
Alex Rodriguez, above, and billionaire Marc Lore appear to be close to owning the Minnesota Timberwolves. Photograph: Thomas Lovelock/MLB Photos via Getty Images

Former MLB star Alex Rodriguez and billionaire Marc Lore appear to be close to owning the Minnesota Timberwolves, finalizing a deal with current owner Glen Taylor, according to reports.

The pair released a statement on Saturday:

“We look forward to entering this phase of the process with Glen Taylor. Our respect for him and the legacy he built lays an amazing foundation for what is to come. We are excited by the prospect of getting to know the Timberwolves organization, the talented team and their incredible fans.”

The letter of intent paves the way for a 30-day exclusive negotiating window. If a deal is finalized, they would first become minority owners, according to the Athletic, and in 2023, would gain full control.

The Athletic reported an agreement was reached on a $1.5bn price and that the team would remain in Minneapolis – a requirement from Taylor, who has owned the team for almost 30 years.

ESPN also reported the deal was being finalized.

Rodriguez attempted last year to buy the New York Mets alongside ex-fiancee Jennifer Lopez, and Lore was among the other partners in that bid.

Lore, a billionaire New York native, stepped down as Walmart CEO in January. The former entrepreneur created Jet.com (sold to Walmart for $3bn) and Diapers.com (sold to Amazon for $545m), among other business ventures.

A three-time AL MVP, Rodriguez retired in August 2016 with 698 home runs, a .295 average and 2,086 RBIs in 22 years. He was suspended for the 2014 season for violations of Major League Baseball’s drug agreement and labor contract.

A-Rod, now 45 years old, earned about $448m as a player. The 14-time All-Star started his career with Seattle, signed a record contract with Texas in December 2000, and then moved from shortstop to third base when he was traded from the Rangers to the New York Yankees ahead of the 2004 season.

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Serena Williams, Carlos Alcaraz Start US Open Mixed Doubles vs. Team with Women's Doubles Champ

Serena Williams, of the United States, reacts after a winning point during a women's doubles match with her sister Venus Willams against Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, and Peyton Stearns, also of the United States, at the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026, in Mason, Ohio. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)
Serena Williams, of the United States, reacts after a winning point during a women's doubles match with her sister Venus Willams against Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, and Peyton Stearns, also of the United States, at the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026, in Mason, Ohio. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)
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Serena Williams, Carlos Alcaraz Start US Open Mixed Doubles vs. Team with Women's Doubles Champ

Serena Williams, of the United States, reacts after a winning point during a women's doubles match with her sister Venus Willams against Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, and Peyton Stearns, also of the United States, at the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026, in Mason, Ohio. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)
Serena Williams, of the United States, reacts after a winning point during a women's doubles match with her sister Venus Willams against Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, and Peyton Stearns, also of the United States, at the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026, in Mason, Ohio. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)

Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz will open the US Open mixed doubles tournament against a team that features the reigning women's doubles champion.

Williams and Alcaraz will face Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool on Tuesday in the first round of the championship, which will be Williams' first match at the US Open since 2022.

Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic might have an even tougher draw. The top seeds, based on having the lowest combined singles ranking in the 16-team field, face the team of Katerina Siniakova and Henry Patten — who are the No. 1-ranked doubles players on their respective tours.

The first round and quarterfinals are Tuesday. The semifinals and final are Wednesday.

Williams and Alcaraz were drawn to face one of the teams that emerged from the qualifying tournament that was held Monday, The Associated Press reported. That ended up being Routliffe and Glasspool, who won two matches, both requiring match tiebreakers, to secure their place in the main draw.

Routliffe teamed with Gabriela Dabrowski to beat Siniakova and Taylor Townsend for last year's US Open women's doubles title. They also won the championship in 2023.

Sabalenka and Djokovic had been slated to play Leylah Fernandez and Frances Tiafoe. But Tiafoe withdrew from mixed doubles Monday after losing to Arthur Fils in the Cincinnati Open final on Sunday, opening the door for a team that lost in qualifying to nevertheless earn a spot.

Siniakova and Patten won both their matches to reach the main draw. Kristina Mladenovic and Marcelo Arevalo, who lost to Routliffe and Glasspool in their second match, got the remaining spot and will play Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik.

The eight-team qualifying tournament was added this year to give the traditional doubles specialists an opportunity to compete for the US Open title.

When the tournament was overhauled last year — with a $1 million prize for the winners — in an effort to get top singles players to compete, direct entry was based on singles rankings, essentially shutting out the players who largely focus on doubles.

Williams is not planning to play singles in New York. Alcaraz, who has been sidelined since April with a right wrist injury, will return to defend his singles title.

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Iraq's Australian Coach Arnold Renews Contract for 6 Months

Iraq's Australian coach Graham Arnold. Reuters
Iraq's Australian coach Graham Arnold. Reuters
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Iraq's Australian Coach Arnold Renews Contract for 6 Months

Iraq's Australian coach Graham Arnold. Reuters
Iraq's Australian coach Graham Arnold. Reuters

Iraq's Australian coach Graham Arnold has renewed his contract with the team until 2027, the country's FA said on Monday.

After weeks of speculation, the IFA made the announcement at a press conference attended by the 63-year-old, confirming he would remain in ⁠charge through the ⁠Gulf Cup in Saudi Arabia in September, as well as the Asian Cup early next year.

"I have renewed my contract for ⁠six months and this decision is in my best interest and in the best interest of the Iraq national team, although the association offered me a four-year extension," Arnold was quoted as saying by the Iraqi News Agency.

Arnold guided ⁠Iraq ⁠to this year's World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, ending a 40-year absence from the tournament. However, Iraq exited at the group stage after losing all of their Group I matches against Norway, France and Senegal.

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PSG Coach Warns Players Need to Compete Out of their Comfort Zone

Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Stade Rennes v Paris St Germain - Roazhon Park, Rennes, France - August 23, 2026 Paris St Germain coach Luis Enrique with Vitinha REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Stade Rennes v Paris St Germain - Roazhon Park, Rennes, France - August 23, 2026 Paris St Germain coach Luis Enrique with Vitinha REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
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PSG Coach Warns Players Need to Compete Out of their Comfort Zone

Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Stade Rennes v Paris St Germain - Roazhon Park, Rennes, France - August 23, 2026 Paris St Germain coach Luis Enrique with Vitinha REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Stade Rennes v Paris St Germain - Roazhon Park, Rennes, France - August 23, 2026 Paris St Germain coach Luis Enrique with Vitinha REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

Paris Saint-Germain players can ill afford to cruise through the season as coach Luis Enrique warned he expected them to play out of their comfort zone.

The PSG coach took off both Ousmane Dembélé and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia at halftime of their opening game of the new Ligue 1 season, bringing on Mika Godts and Ferran Torres, who scored twice to salvage a point at Stade Rennais on Sunday.

"Football is like that. Paris Saint-Germain have won nothing, nothing," he said of the new season where they defend not only their Ligue 1 title but chase a third successive Champions League victory.

"If you think about what you've won, you're not ⁠going to win ⁠anything! There is no credit. You have to show every day, every match, every training session, that you're ready. Otherwise, it's easy to relax and start slipping.

"I wasn't brought up that way. We are always looking to win, and to keep winning, you have to step outside your comfort zone. Is that clear?"

PSG, who won the European ⁠Super Cup this month but lost the French version to Racing Lens, played a sluggish first half at Rennes and were 2-0 down at the break.

But new Spanish signing Ferran Torres, who netted the winner in last month's World Cup final, came on for Dembélé and scored twice to ensure a point for the Parisians.

"He wasn't bad, was he? He scored two goals, but I'm happy with everyone who came on in a very difficult match because we had a lot of trouble controlling Rennes in the first half," Reuters quoted Luis Enrique as saying.

"They ⁠were good ⁠on the counterattack and scored two wonderful goals. It was complicated, but it's important for me to see that so many players are ready.

"We sign players to go on a long journey with them. It's very positive for him and we're very happy," he said of Ferran Torres' debut.

"We're always looking to find the best players for every match. Places in the team will be more difficult to get than last year, and that's our ambition.

"I think we had a very good transfer window, and we're still open to different possibilities. Everyone knows how difficult it is for a team to keep winning. And clearly, we still need to improve."