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Kyle Kuzma opts out of his contract with the Wizards, AP source says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

Kyle Kuzma will be a free agent when the league’s annual offseason shopping period starts next week.Kuzma has declined his $13 million player option with the Washington Wizards for next season, a person with knowledge of his decision said Tuesday, meaning he will be a free agent. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither side disclosed the move.ESPN first reported Kuzma had declined the option. The move was not a surprise: Kuzma had said to The Washington Post and The Athletic in December that he was not planning to exercise the option, and given what he will command on the market, his decision makes sense.Kuzma is coming off the highest-scoring season of his six-year career. He averaged 21.2 points for the Wizards, who are finalizing a trade that will send three-time All-Star Bradley Beal to the Phoenix Suns. It’s possible that Kuzma could return to Washington on a far more lucrative deal; $13 million for someone averaging more t...

Big Pokey, of Houston’s legendary Screwed Up Click, dies after collapsing at Juneteenth show

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — Big Pokey, a popular Texas rapper and original member of Houston’s pioneering Screwed Up Click, died Sunday after a Juneteenth performance. Born Milton Powell, Pokey was 48.Known for Texas and Gulf Coast hits such as “Ball N’ Parlay,”“Who Dat Talking Down,” and a verse on DJ Screw’s nearly 36-minute iconic freestyle known as “June 27th,” he collapsed while performing at Pour09, a Beaumont bar and nightlife space about an hour east of Houston. Videos quickly circulated on social media of the rapper, who was featured on Megan Thee Stallion’s 2022 “Southside Royalty Freestyle,” taking a deep breath into his microphone before appearing to pass out and fall onto his back. Pokey’s death was confirmed to The Associated Press by his publicist La’Torria Lemon, as well as Tom Gillam III, a justice of the peace in Jefferson County, where Powell was performing. Family and officials are awaiting autopsy results to learn the cause of death. Big Pokey, known by a slew of...

Reds designate veteran Wil Myers for assignment

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

CINCINNATI (AP) — The Cincinnati Reds designated outfielder Wil Myers for assignment after activating him from the 10-day injured list on Tuesday.Myers, an 11-year veteran who was signed as a free agent during the offseason, had been sidelined with a kidney stone and a left shoulder sprain.The 32-year-old Myers, the American League Rookie of the Year in 2013 with Tampa Bay and an All-Star in 2016 with San Diego, batted .189 with three homers and 12 RBIs in 32 games before he was sidelined.If Myers clears waivers, he can be outrighted to the minors or released.The Reds took a nine-game winning streak into Tuesday’s game against Colorado.“It was a tough decision,” Reds manager David Bell said. “It speaks a lot to how our guys were playing. Wil has been injured and hasn’t played a lot but has a long track record of being a really good player. He’s become a big part of our team. He also dedicated himself to our team and what is going on here. We know he can come back and become the play...

Girgensons gets a 1-year, $2.5 million contract to return to the Sabres for a 10th season

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Forward Zemgus Girgensons is returning to the Buffalo Sabres for a 10th season after signing a one-year, $2.5 million contract Tuesday.The 29-year-old Girgensons is the team’s longest-serving active player and was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent next month.Despite extending their NHL-record postseason drought to a 12th consecutive season, the Sabres had 42 wins, their most since 2010-11, the last time they made the playoffs. Buffalo finished 10th in the Eastern Conference standings, falling two points short of making the playoffs.Girgensons, who is from Latvia, was selected by the Sabres in the first round of the 2012 draft, and he has established himself as a valuable checking-line forward.He’s coming off a season in which he had 10 goals and eight assists in 80 games. Overall, Girgensons has 81 goals and 174 points in 625 career games, which rank 13th on the team list.In a separate move, the Sabres signed forward Lukas Rousek to a two-year contra...

Victor Wembanyama throws out ceremonial first pitch at Yankee Stadium ahead of NBA draft

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Victor Wembanyama, the 7-foot-plus French player expected to be taken by San Antonio with the first pick in the NBA draft this week, threw out a wild ceremonial first pitch before the New York Yankees played the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night.He wore a pinstriped jersey with “New York” across the chest rather than the traditional interlocking “NY,” and he had Joe DiMaggio’s No. 5 on the back. Standing on the rubber, he fired the ball in the dirt, well wide of the plate to the first-base side.The 19-year-old spent this past season with Metropolitans 92 in the French league. The NBA lists his height as 7-4. He has said 7-3 and some internet sites show 7-5.The NBA draft is Thursday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.___AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsSource

Tomar siestas durante el día puede ser bueno para nuestro cerebro, revela un estudio

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

(CNN) — Tomar siestas durante el día puede ayudar a mantener la salud del cerebro a medida que envejecemos, según un nuevo estudio. Sin embargo, investigaciones anteriores han demostrado que las siestas en exceso también pueden ser perjudiciales.La práctica habitual de la siesta se relacionó con un mayor volumen cerebral total, lo que se asocia a un menor riesgo de demencia y otras enfermedades, según investigadores del University College de Londres (UCL) y la Universidad de la República de Uruguay.En promedio, la diferencia de volumen cerebral entre los que toman siestas y los que no equivalía a entre 2,5 y 6,5 años de envejecimiento, según los investigadores.“Nuestros hallazgos sugieren que, para algunas personas, las siestas diurnas cortas pueden ser una parte del rompecabezas que podría ayudar a preservar la salud del cerebro a medida que envejecemos”, dijo la autora principal Victoria Garfield, investigadora de la UCL, en un comunicado.Aunque el estudio estuvo...

Polls close in hotly contested Virginia party primaries

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

Counting is underway to name the winners in Virginia’s Democratic and Republican primaries for top prosecutor, state legislature, county board and more.Tuesday sets the stage for a November election that could re-define the balance of power in the Old Dominion, and the results are sure to be closely scrutinized for hints about which direction a divided General Assembly could swing.WTOP’s reporters will keep an eye on the numbers throughout the evening. Stay with WTOP.com and listen online for updates and analysis as the votes are counted. Click here for live election results.Live Virginia primary election resultsMore Local Politics and Elections NewsMore Virginia NewsWhile much attention will be given to races for state legislature, Commonwealth’s Attorneys races could serve as a bellwether for gauging Democratic voter sentiment in a crucial area of Northern Virginia.Incumbents Steve Descano, Buta Biberaj and Parisa Dehghani-Tafti were propelled into their roles on...

Former Oklahoma and MLB pitcher George Frazier dies at age 68

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

Oklahoma has announced that former pitcher George Frazier, a World Series champion who had a nearly three-decade run as a television broadcaster, has died at age 68.The Denver Post reported he died Monday in Tulsa after a recent illness.In two seasons at Oklahoma, he played on College World Series teams in 1975 and 1976 and was 12-4 with eight saves and a 2.62 ERA,Frazier played parts of 10 big league seasons with five clubs. He appeared in the 1981 World Series with the New York Yankees, who held a moment of silence in his memory before Tuesday night’s game against Seattle.Frazier helped the Chicago Cubs win their first division title in 1984 and became a World Series champion with the 1987 Minnesota Twins, pitching two scoreless innings in Game 4 against St. Louis. He had a 4.20 ERA with 35 wins and 29 saves in 415 major league appearances.After that, he spent 18 years as a television broadcaster with the Colorado Rockies.He returned to Oklahoma in 2015 as a color analyst on...

11 new Colorado laws go into effect in July

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- A lot of laws were passed and signed by Gov. Jared Polis during and after the 2023 legislative session, and they don't all go into effect at the same time.There are 11 laws that go into effect July 1, but here are three that might impact people the most:1. Change to motor vehicle theft lawsSB 23-097 changes the way motor vehicle theft laws work in Colorado.Previously, the severity of the crime was determined mainly by how much the car was worth. That meant that someone stealing a car worth more than $100,000 would be punished much more harshly than someone stealing a car worth less than $2,000. What are the most common crimes in Denver and Colorado? With the new law, the severity of the crime depends on a few factors.For example, after July 1, for someone to be charged with the highest offense -- motor vehicle theft in the first degree -- they need to have two prior convictions for motor vehicle theft or unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.2. Law codifying Miranda...

What to know about ticks in Colorado

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:59 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — The Colorado Department of Health and Environment sent out a request asking people who find ticks to send them in the mail.“I think with things like climate change and all the moisture, we're going to see an uptick," Lorna McCallister, the target species manager at Butterfly Pavilion, said. The next TABOR refund check could surpass $800 McCallister said ticks have always been in Colorado, and disease transmission is lower compared to other states. But it's always important to double-check your body and clothes for them if you go out in a tick-prone area.“It's good if you get them early to prevent anything from spreading," McCallister said.This undated photo provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows a blacklegged tick, which is also known as a deer tick. Ticks will be more active than usual early in spring 2023, and that means Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections could spread earlier and in greater numbers than in a typical ...