Lucho Acosta’s stay in Dallas could be short lived as it has been revealed that Brazilian giants Fluminense are in ‘advanced talks’ to sign the attacker for a reported fee of $3m.

According to multiple sources in Brazil, the two clubs are in direct contact over a deal that would see Acosta make the move to Rio de Janeiro.

Acosta forced his way out of FC Cincinnati during the winter after a falling out with club hierarchy, but his time in Dallas has not quite gone to plan since making the move. 

The 31-year-old has scored just five goals in 21 MLS games this season after joining Dallas to be the centerpiece of their attacking force. 

🚨Fluminense tiene negociaciones muy avanzadas para comprar el pase de Luciano Acosta de Dallas FC.
*️⃣Las charlas se encuentran en la etapa final en torno a una operación de u$s 3.000.000 más 500.000 en bonos. pic.twitter.com/JDjwihDsxN

— César Luis Merlo (@CLMerlo) August 6, 2025

Reports from César Luis Merlo have suggested that talks are in ‘the final stage’ between the two clubs, seeing Acosta leave MLS after his second of two stints in the league. 

📸 Jeff Dean – 2025 Getty Images

The North Carolina Tar Heels are known, in the past decade, for producing NFL-caliber running backs. That continued in 2024 with Omarion Hampton, whom the Los Angeles Chargers took 22nd overall in April’s NFL Draft.

With Hampton no longer in Chapel Hill, the question is: who starts at running back for UNC in 2025? If you aren’t familiar with the name Davion Gause, you might want to start paying attention.

Gause, who played most of his 2024 freshman campaign as Hampton’s backup, recently earned a nomination to the Doak Walker Award Watch List.

The Doak Walker Award is annually presented to college football’s best running back. If Gause is getting this type of recognition, with the 2024 Fenway Bowl being his only collegiate start, expectations are extremely high for the second-year back from Florida.

Gause broke onto the scene during North Carolina’s 38-20 victory over Charlotte last year, recording 105 rushing yards and his first collegiate touchdown, in just his second-ever college football game. Hampton left that victory at halftime, due to a previously unknown injury, giving the Opa-Locka native his chance to shine.

Dominating the Backfield 💨

Our guys making noise on the Doak Walker Award Watch List – honoring the nation’s most outstanding collegiate running back. pic.twitter.com/KMlLju2Yh2

— ACC Football (@ACCFootball) August 5, 2025

A week later, Gause scored his second touchdown during the Tar Heels’ 45-10 thumping of NC Central. Gause didn’t score against until November 23 against Boston College, scoring twice in UNC’s 41-21 defeat, but proved himself as a reliable scoring threat.

Joining Gause in North Carolina’s running back room are senior Caleb Hood, Michigan transfer Benjamin Hall, redshirt sophomore returner Charleston French and freshman Demon June. If Gause can separate himself early, he’ll be another bell cow back for the Tar Heels.

Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.

This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC running back Davion Gause named to Doak Walker Award Watch List

The Oklahoma City Thunder (and the Seattle Supersonics before them) have 51 jersey numbers worn by the players who have suited up for the franchise since its founding at the start of the 1967-68 season. To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Thunder Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team.

And while those Supersonics jerseys may not remain part of the franchise history should a new team be established in Seattle as was the case with the return of the Charlotte Hornets, they are part of the Thunder’s history today.

For this article, we continue with the 35th jersey number in the series, jersey No. 35, with 11 players in total having donned the jersey in the history of the franchise.

The eighth of those players did so in the Seattle SuperSonics era, forward alum Art Long. After ending his college career at Cincinnati, Long would go unselected in the 1996 NBA Draft, instead signing with both overseas and domestic clubs in other leagues before landing a spot with the Sacramento Kings in 1999.

The Rochester, New York native signed with Seattle in 2001. His stay with the team would span a single season, coming to an end when he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2002.

During his time suiting up for the Sonics, Long wore only jersey No. 35 and put up 4.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Thunder jersey history No. 35 – Art Long (2001-02)

The Brooklyn Nets have 52 jersey numbers worn by over 600 different players over the course of their history since the franchise was founded in 1967 as a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), when the team was known as the “New Jersey Americans”.

Since then, that league has been absorbed by the NBA with the team that would later become the New York Nets and New Jersey Nets before settling on the name by which they are known today, bringing their rich player and jersey history with them to the league of today.

To commemorate the players who played for the Nets over the decades wearing those 52 different jersey numbers, Nets Wire is covering the entire history of the franchise’s jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. The 22nd of those 52 different numbers is jersey No. 21, which has has had a total of 26 players wear the number in the history of the team.

The 23rd of those players wearing No. 21 played in the Brooklyn Nets era, big man alum LaMarcus Aldridge. After ending his college career at Texas, Aldridge was picked up with the second overall selection of the 2006 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls.

The Dallas, Texas native would play the first nine seasons of his pro career with the Portland Trail Blazers instead after a draft night deal. He would also play for the San Antonio Spurs before he signed with Brooklyn in 2021 for the final two seasons of his NBA career.

During his time suiting up for the Nets, Aldridge wore only jersey No. 21 and put up 12.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets jersey history No. 21 – LaMarcus Aldridge (2021-22)

The 2027 NBA Draft is nearly two years away, but it’s never too early to look ahead in the world of basketball.

On Tuesday, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman dropped a first look at what his mock draft projections look like for the 2027 cycle. Wasserman only included the first round (30 picks), but his list featured plenty of need-to-know names for the Big Blue Nation — including one player about to begin his freshman season with the Kentucky Wildcats.

Of the 30 picks, 10 of them hold a connection to Kentucky. Nine of those 10 are still in the high school ranks as 2026 recruits (and we’ll talk about them more in a minute), while the lone incoming college prospect to make the cut is 6-foot-4 guard Jasper Johnson. Wasserman has Johnson going 22nd overall in the 2027 NBA Draft to the Golden State Warriors.

“Jasper Johnson could enter the one-and-done conversation with his potent shotmaking and touch shots,” Wasserman wrote. “Depending on how he looks as a playmaker and if scouts question his 175-pound frame for a scoring guard, he may also have something to prove after his freshman season.

“Whether it’s in 2026 or 2027, there should be interest in Johnson’s confident shooting, uptempo pacing and instant offense. He came off USA’s bench this summer at the U19s to average 8.0 points in 15.4 minutes while draining multiple threes in four-of-seven games.”

Johnson is expected to compete right away for minutes in Kentucky’s backcourt as the program enters year two of the Mark Pope era. Wasserman believes it will all begin to click for Johnson once he enters his sophomore season.

But Johnson isn’t the only name to pay attention to on this list. The nine aforementioned high school recruits are all being recruited by Kentucky in some capacity. Below is where Wasserman has them going in his mock draft, along with their current player rating in the 2026 Rivals Industry Rankings.

Of this group, Stokes has already taken his official visit to Kentucky. His recruitment isn’t ending anytime soon, but at this moment, the Wildcats reportedly hold the momentum for the potential No. 1 overall draft pick. Keita also snuck in a recent one-day visit to UK. Holt, Smith Jr., Williams, Howard, Collins, and Thompson all have OVs to Kentucky on the schedule for this fall. As for Muurinen, he included the ‘Cats in his top seven list last month, but does not currently have any future official visits set up.

Now it’s time for Pope and Co. to start reeling them in.

The 2027 NBA Draft is nearly two years away, but it’s never too early to look ahead in the world of basketball.

On Tuesday, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman dropped a first look at what his mock draft projections look like for the 2027 cycle. Wasserman only included the first round (30 picks), but his list featured plenty of need-to-know names for the Big Blue Nation — including one player about to begin his freshman season with the Kentucky Wildcats.

Of the 30 picks, 10 of them hold a connection to Kentucky. Nine of those 10 are still in the high school ranks as 2026 recruits (and we’ll talk about them more in a minute), while the lone incoming college prospect to make the cut is 6-foot-4 guard Jasper Johnson. Wasserman has Johnson going 22nd overall in the 2027 NBA Draft to the Golden State Warriors.

“Jasper Johnson could enter the one-and-done conversation with his potent shotmaking and touch shots,” Wasserman wrote. “Depending on how he looks as a playmaker and if scouts question his 175-pound frame for a scoring guard, he may also have something to prove after his freshman season.

“Whether it’s in 2026 or 2027, there should be interest in Johnson’s confident shooting, uptempo pacing and instant offense. He came off USA’s bench this summer at the U19s to average 8.0 points in 15.4 minutes while draining multiple threes in four-of-seven games.”

Johnson is expected to compete right away for minutes in Kentucky’s backcourt as the program enters year two of the Mark Pope era. Wasserman believes it will all begin to click for Johnson once he enters his sophomore season.

But Johnson isn’t the only name to pay attention to on this list. The nine aforementioned high school recruits are all being recruited by Kentucky in some capacity. Below is where Wasserman has them going in his mock draft, along with their current player rating in the 2026 Rivals Industry Rankings.

Of this group, Stokes has already taken his official visit to Kentucky. His recruitment isn’t ending anytime soon, but at this moment, the Wildcats reportedly hold the momentum for the potential No. 1 overall draft pick. Keita also snuck in a recent one-day visit to UK. Holt, Smith Jr., Williams, Howard, Collins, and Thompson all have OVs to Kentucky on the schedule for this fall. As for Muurinen, he included the ‘Cats in his top seven list last month, but does not currently have any future official visits set up.

Now it’s time for Pope and Co. to start reeling them in.

The 2027 NBA Draft is nearly two years away, but it’s never too early to look ahead in the world of basketball.

On Tuesday, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman dropped a first look at what his mock draft projections look like for the 2027 cycle. Wasserman only included the first round (30 picks), but his list featured plenty of need-to-know names for the Big Blue Nation — including one player about to begin his freshman season with the Kentucky Wildcats.

Of the 30 picks, 10 of them hold a connection to Kentucky. Nine of those 10 are still in the high school ranks as 2026 recruits (and we’ll talk about them more in a minute), while the lone incoming college prospect to make the cut is 6-foot-4 guard Jasper Johnson. Wasserman has Johnson going 22nd overall in the 2027 NBA Draft to the Golden State Warriors.

“Jasper Johnson could enter the one-and-done conversation with his potent shotmaking and touch shots,” Wasserman wrote. “Depending on how he looks as a playmaker and if scouts question his 175-pound frame for a scoring guard, he may also have something to prove after his freshman season.

“Whether it’s in 2026 or 2027, there should be interest in Johnson’s confident shooting, uptempo pacing and instant offense. He came off USA’s bench this summer at the U19s to average 8.0 points in 15.4 minutes while draining multiple threes in four-of-seven games.”

Johnson is expected to compete right away for minutes in Kentucky’s backcourt as the program enters year two of the Mark Pope era. Wasserman believes it will all begin to click for Johnson once he enters his sophomore season.

But Johnson isn’t the only name to pay attention to on this list. The nine aforementioned high school recruits are all being recruited by Kentucky in some capacity. Below is where Wasserman has them going in his mock draft, along with their current player rating in the 2026 Rivals Industry Rankings.

Of this group, Stokes has already taken his official visit to Kentucky. His recruitment isn’t ending anytime soon, but at this moment, the Wildcats reportedly hold the momentum for the potential No. 1 overall draft pick. Keita also snuck in a recent one-day visit to UK. Holt, Smith Jr., Williams, Howard, Collins, and Thompson all have OVs to Kentucky on the schedule for this fall. As for Muurinen, he included the ‘Cats in his top seven list last month, but does not currently have any future official visits set up.

Now it’s time for Pope and Co. to start reeling them in.

The 2027 NBA Draft is nearly two years away, but it’s never too early to look ahead in the world of basketball.

On Tuesday, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman dropped a first look at what his mock draft projections look like for the 2027 cycle. Wasserman only included the first round (30 picks), but his list featured plenty of need-to-know names for the Big Blue Nation — including one player about to begin his freshman season with the Kentucky Wildcats.

Of the 30 picks, 10 of them hold a connection to Kentucky. Nine of those 10 are still in the high school ranks as 2026 recruits (and we’ll talk about them more in a minute), while the lone incoming college prospect to make the cut is 6-foot-4 guard Jasper Johnson. Wasserman has Johnson going 22nd overall in the 2027 NBA Draft to the Golden State Warriors.

“Jasper Johnson could enter the one-and-done conversation with his potent shotmaking and touch shots,” Wasserman wrote. “Depending on how he looks as a playmaker and if scouts question his 175-pound frame for a scoring guard, he may also have something to prove after his freshman season.

“Whether it’s in 2026 or 2027, there should be interest in Johnson’s confident shooting, uptempo pacing and instant offense. He came off USA’s bench this summer at the U19s to average 8.0 points in 15.4 minutes while draining multiple threes in four-of-seven games.”

Johnson is expected to compete right away for minutes in Kentucky’s backcourt as the program enters year two of the Mark Pope era. Wasserman believes it will all begin to click for Johnson once he enters his sophomore season.

But Johnson isn’t the only name to pay attention to on this list. The nine aforementioned high school recruits are all being recruited by Kentucky in some capacity. Below is where Wasserman has them going in his mock draft, along with their current player rating in the 2026 Rivals Industry Rankings.

Of this group, Stokes has already taken his official visit to Kentucky. His recruitment isn’t ending anytime soon, but at this moment, the Wildcats reportedly hold the momentum for the potential No. 1 overall draft pick. Keita also snuck in a recent one-day visit to UK. Holt, Smith Jr., Williams, Howard, Collins, and Thompson all have OVs to Kentucky on the schedule for this fall. As for Muurinen, he included the ‘Cats in his top seven list last month, but does not currently have any future official visits set up.

Now it’s time for Pope and Co. to start reeling them in.

Paul Finebaum Reveals Why He’s ‘Pretty Concerned’ with One Major SEC Program originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The 2025 college football season presents schools with a chance to build on their performance from the previous year and aim for a spot in the College Football Playoff. Last season, six teams reached the postseason tournament for the first time in their program’s history.

The Florida Gators are aiming to ride the momentum they created at the end of last season. The Gators finished with an 8-5 record but finished the season on a four-game winning streak. The team was led by true freshman quarterback DJ Lagway, who stepped in for Graham Mertz when Mertz suffered a season-ending injury early in the season.

Lagway finished the season with 1,915 yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions. However, this offseason, he has dealt with injuries, which led ESPN’s Paul Finebaum to express his concerns about Lagway’s health on “The Paul Finebaum Show.”

“I think we need to find out exactly what is going on with Lagway,” Finebaum said. “To put it mildly, I’m pretty concerned. I don’t know how anybody couldn’t be concerned. He is not just a great player; he’s that franchise. Without Lagway, there’s no way they are going to pull this thing off this year.”

Lagway has reportedly been dealing with a shoulder injury to start the offseason. Additionally, he is now facing multiple issues, including a lower-body injury that has resulted in him wearing a walking boot.

The Gators start this season with high expectations, ranked No. 14 in the nation according to ESPN’s SP+ rankings. These rankings consider three key factors: returning production, recent recruiting and recent history.

Florida has retained a significant amount of returning production from last season, keeping 66% of its roster, which ranks 18th in the country. Additionally, they have secured the 10th-ranked recruiting class in the offseason.

Their playoff aspirations could be impacted by a challenging schedule, as noted by Finebaum. Athlon Sports’ Kyle Wood ranks Florida’s schedule as the third-toughest in the SEC. The Gators face a critical four-game stretch early in the season, which includes away games against the LSU Tigers and Miami Hurricanes, a home game against the Texas Longhorns and another away game at the Texas A&M Aggies.

Finebaum has previously stated his belief that with Lagway, the Gators have a chance to reach the College Football Playoff for the first time in their history. Without Lagway, he thinks Florida has no chance.

The Gators will start their season against the Long Island Sharks at 7 p.m. ET Aug. 30.

Related: Paul Finebaum Says Struggling SEC Team Could Surprise If Star QB Stays Healthy

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 4, 2025, where it first appeared.