The Arizona Cardinals signed three players to future contracts for the 2025 season, the team announced Monday.

Cornerback Ekow Boye-Doe, linebacker Elliott Brown and offensive lineman McClendon Curtis were all signed to future contracts which gives the trio the opportunity to compete for a roster spot in training camp.

Boye-Doe was born in Ghana and immigrated to the United States with his family as a 3-year-old. After four seasons at Kansas State, he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent. He played six games for the Super Bowl champion Chiefs before he was waived in August 2024. He later spent time on the New York Giants practice squad in 2024.

After a college career at Virginia, Brown spent the past two seasons in the Canadian Football League playing for the Edmonton Elks. Across two seasons, he played 27 games and recorded 10 sacks, 54 tackles and two forced fumbles for the Elks. 

Curtis appeared in five games for the Seattle Seahawks over the past two seasons while bouncing between the active roster and the practice squad. He originally signed with the Las Vegas Raiders as a free agent in May 2023 after going undrafted out of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2023. 

Monday’s moves come after the Cardinals also re-signed nine players to future contracts last Tuesday.

Arizona Cardinals 2025 future contracts

– Wide receiver Andre Baccellia
– Cornerback Ekow Boye-Doe
– Cornerback Jaden Davis
– Cornerback Darren Hall
– Offensive lineman McClendon Curtis
– Offensive lineman Matthew Jones
– Wide receiver Tejhaun Palmer
– Tight end Bernhard Seikovits
– Defensive lineman Anthony Goodlow
– Defensive lineman P.J. Mustipher
– Defensive lineman Ben Stille
– Linebacker Elliott Brown

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The Phoenix Suns ruled guard Grayson Allen out for the remainder of Sunday’s 120-113 win against the Charlotte Hornets due to left knee soreness.

Allen left the matchup after playing 13 minutes for the Suns in the first half. He scored 13 points and shot 4-of-7 from the field, including 3-of-6 from three-point range.

Allen has previously missed time this season due to a hamstring injury, Achilles soreness and being placed in the concussion protocol.

The injury comes after Suns forward Royce O’Neale returned to the lineup in Sunday’s game after missing the previous six games due to an ankle injury. Phoenix were without center Jusuf Nurkic due to an illness.

Despite trailing by five points entering the fourth quarter, the Suns outscored the Hornets 27-15 in the fourth quarter to secure their third straight win.

Devin Booker led the way for the Suns, scoring 30 points, registering three assists and shooting 10-of-20 from the field, including 4-of-9 from three-point range. Kevin Durant added scored 27 points on 11-of-24 shooting.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jalen Hurts tossed two touchdown passes in his first game since a late-season concussion, Dallas Goedert threw three stiff-arms on a rugged touchdown catch and the Philadelphia Eagles rode their NFL-best defense to a 22-10 wild-card playoff win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night.

Hurts threw for a modest 131 yards but played with no hesitation in his return from a three-week layoff after a concussion in December. He started strong — six straight completions to open the game — and held off the Packers with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Goedert in the third quarter that will be forever stamped on the franchise’s postseason highlight reel.

Philadelphia’s defense handled the rest.

The Eagles turned a recovered fumble on the opening kickoff into Hurts’ first TD pass three plays later and the defense picked off Jordan Love twice in the first half. Holding a 19-10 lead in the fourth, the Eagles forced a turnover on downs when Green Bay had a fourth-and-3 on its own 41 with five minutes left in the game.

Quinyon Mitchell had one final interception of Love with 1:51 left in the game that sealed the win for the NFC East champions, who’ll host a division game next week at the Linc.

“It’s playoff football,” running back Saquon Barkley said. “That team is really well coached and they’ve got a lot of really great players. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

“At the end of the day, no matter how it looks, just want to get the win.”

Barkley, who led the NFL in rushing with 2,005 yards, had 119 yards in his Eagles’ postseason debut.

“A year ago, I put out a tweet when I was on my couch watching playoff football that I gotta find a way to get back in it,” said Barkley, who spent his first six NFL seasons with the New York Giants. “So I’m just happy to be here.

“And shoutout to my teammates and, most importantly, we move on. And we get another home game, so that’s good.”

The Eagles had the book on the Packers — and had time for some light reading as wide receiver A.J. Brown flipped through the pages of “Inner Excellence” by Jim Murphy while on the bench. Brown had one catch for 10 yards.

Love threw for 212 yards and was intercepted three times as he nursed a sore right elbow that was hurt in the regular-season finale against Chicago,

Josh Jacobs ran for 81 yards and a score — and popped Green Bay’s offense with a 31-yard run in the third where he shook off one tackle, had his jersey stretched to his heel by one defender, plowed one more and dragged two more hapless Eagles to the 1-yard line. Jacobs punched it in for the score on the next play and cut it to 16-10.

Aided by an unnecessary roughness flag on Green Bay, Hurts got the Eagles close enough for Jake Elliott to kick a 30-yard field goal for a 19-10 lead. Elliott needed the short kick for a confidence boost after he missed an extra point on Goedert’s touchdown.

Elliott, who struggled with kicks from 50-plus yards this season, added a 32-yarder in the fourth and a 31-yarder in the first quarter.

The Eagles had the Linc thumping, from the time the public address announcer put a little relish on his command to, “Welcome back to the Eagles lineup, Jalen Huurts,” to the recovered fumble moments later.

Green Bay’s Keisean Nixon had the ball knocked loose by Oren Burks and it was recovered by Jeremiah Trotter at the Green Bay 28. Hurts needed only three plays to find Jahan Dotson for an 11-yard touchdown.

Darius Slay went over his shoulder for the cornerback to haul in the ball like an elite receiver for an interception and All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun made it two for the Eagles. The Eagles didn’t score off those picks, but did keep the Packers off the board.

Hurts put all immediate questions about his health to rest when he completed his first six passes for 39 yards, including the TD to Dotson. He then missed his next seven going into the half. He didn’t complete another pass until late in the third quarter, then hit seven of his final eight overall, that included the Goedert TD catch.

Brandon McManus, who missed a 38-yard earlier, hit one from 26 yards to make it 10-3 at halftime.

Injuries

Packers: Lost receivers Romeo Doubs (concussion) and Jayden Reed (shoulder), offensive linemen Elgton Jenkins (stinger) and Josh Myers (left leg) and several defenders to injury.

Eagles: LB Nakobe Dean was ruled out quickly after leaving with a knee injury in the second quarter.

Up next

Packers: Season over.

Eagles: Wait to find out if they play Tampa Bay, the Vikings or the Rams.

TUSCON, Ariz. (AP) — Caleb Love scored 16 points, Anthony Dell’Orso made 9 of 9 from the free-throw line and finished with 15 points and Arizona beat UCF 88-80 Saturday night to extend its win streak to six games.

Love made 4 of 7 from 3-point range, grabbed eight rebounds and had six assists. Henri Veesaar added 14 points, Tobe Awaka scored 11 and KJ Lewis 10 for Arizona (10-5, 4-0 Big 12).

Love hit a pair of free throws to open the scoring about a minute into the game, followed with a 3-pointer to make it 5-0 and Arizona never trailed. The Wildcats scored nine consecutive points to take a 14-point lead when Awaka threw down a dunk with 9:38 remaining before halftime.

Darius Johnson hit a 3-pointer for UCF that tied it at 45-all 13 seconds into the second half but Trey Towsend made the first of two free throws 23 seconds later to give Arizona the lead for good. Jaden Ivy-Curry’s 3 cut the deficit to 53-50 but the Wildcats scored 13 of the next 17 points and led by at least eight points for the final 13 minutes.

Keyshawn Hall led UCF (11-4, 2-2 Big 12) with 22 points and Johnson scored 18.

Rokas Jocius converted a three-point play to spark an 18-6 spurt that made it 42-all but Trey Townsend was fouled as he made a layup and hit the and-1 free throw to give Arizona a three-point lead at the intermission.

Arizona made 15 of 30 from the field in the first half but the Knights, who shot 37% (14 of 38), used a 12-3 advantage on the offensive glass to outscore the Wildcats 11-3 in second-chance points.

TEMPE — Stagnant offensive performances have become commonplace for an ASU men’s basketball squad looking to translate its higher-end talent into contending in the Big 12.

It was again the case to start on Saturday, as the Sun Devils mustered a 20-point first half they were unable to make up for in a 72-66 overtime loss to Baylor at Desert Financial Arena.

Baylor made four of its first five shots in overtime while ASU missed its first six, which all but sealed the deal with 1:15 remaining.

A late Basheer Jihad 3 cut the deficit to four with 20.8 seconds left, but the Bears hit the required free throws down the stretch.

It was ASU’s first home loss of the season. The Sun Devils trailed by as much as 15 points.

How did ASU come back to force overtime vs. Baylor?

Adam Miller had a corner 3 to bring ASU within five with 6:22 remaining, and two-and-a-half minutes later, the Sun Devils forced a shot clock violation with a seven-point deficit at the final media timeout.

Jihad keyed a 7-2 run by himself before a fast break by BJ Freeman made it a one-score game. Freeman would then cut a six-point deficit to four before forcing a traveling violation by Baylor in its backcourt.

Free throws by Alston Mason made it a one-score game once again, and a Baylor shot clock violation gave ASU a chance with 18.8 seconds and down three, which Mason cashed in with a quick two instead.

After Jeremy Roach split two free throws, Miller scored on a fast break layup to tie the game with 1.9 seconds left.

“I’m not gonna lie. I knew if I got the ball, I was gonna shoot it, so I kind of just was, like, just trying to get as close as I can and throw it up, put a little touch on it,” Miller said postgame. “Knew if I was gonna get a chance to tie the game I was gonna take the shot.”

Forward Norchad Omier, Baylor’s leading scorer on the season, hit his third and fourth buckets on the night early in the second half to make it a 13-point lead, which is when the game started to swing back and forth.

Freeman responded with a 6-0 run by himself to cut the deficit to seven, and Baylor responded with an 8-0 run with Omier showing up again to get the second bucket.

Omier’s frontcourt mate Josh Ojiunwuna was also big for a Baylor group with a lot of length, as he and Omier finished with 31 points and 25 rebounds combined.

“We have to be able to drive their switches and try to take advantage of their bigs being on our guards. We didn’t do it great in the first half, I thought as the game wore on we were better,” coach Bobby Hurley said postgame. “That’s key, certainly, to hit the paint and kick out.”

Slow start puts ASU behind the 8-ball

Neither team had more than one made shot through the game’s first five minutes, as both defenses came out much more ready than their corresponding offensive units.

“We came out flat,” Miller said. “You just can’t come out like that, especially at home. You gotta be juiced up.”

When their offenses started to produce, ASU was most often able to do so on broken plays where a tough shot went down or the Baylor defense was slow to get back.

Baylor, meanwhile, more often strung multiple off-ball actions together to open up shots for some of their best players, such as VJ Edgecombe, who was ranked No. 4 on ESPN’s most recent top-100 NBA draft board.

ASU finished the first half with three assists to seven turnovers as a team.

ASU’s NBA hopefuls outdone by Baylor’s projected lottery pick

In a game featuring multiple freshmen with likely NBA futures, 6-foot-5 guard VJ Edgecombe of Baylor came out looking the best.

He led all scorers at the half with 12 points and had a 4-for-5 shooting stretch after starting the game with two misses.

Joson Sanon first returned from an ankle injury that kept him out of the last two after ASU started the game 2-for-9 start over 6:04, and he knocked down a baseline mid-ranger on his first possession back.

After a stretch of six games with at least 18 points (55.4% shooting and 58.8% from 3), Sanon had lost his rhythm when the team was on a three-game road trip in December (30.8% shooting and 25.0% on 3s).

He ended the night with the ankle wrapped after scoring five points on five shots in 17 minutes, though he played the final minute of overtime.

“He was on a minutes restriction for me,” Hurley said. “I thought he was fine moving, so hopefully we just keep building on it.”

Jayden Quaintance, who is self-admittedly still looking for his offensive footing, finished with just five points but communicated like he’s just waiting for the right support to set him up for success.

He managed two blocks in the game, continuing to make his greatest impact on the defensive end including with some early stops against Edgecombe.

“He can play anywhere. He’s just one of those guys, I got a freak on defense,” Hurley said. “If I had five of them, we’d have some defense.”

ASU next hosts UCF on Tuesday at 9 p.m. MST. The Golden Knights fell to Arizona on Saturday.

The Fiesta Bowl intends to draw more local fans to the event going forward, considering traveling parties may not be as consistent due to the expanding number of playoff games, CEO Erik Moses said.

When Penn State defeated Boise State at the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve for a quarterfinal game in the first expanded College Football Playoff, the announced attendance was 63,854, which Moses called strong. For a non-playoff game between Oregon and Liberty in 2023, the attendance was 47,769, while two years ago a CFP semifinal between TCU and Michigan drew a sell-out 71,723.

The crowd this time was noticeably Boise State heavy after Penn State already hosted a first-round CFP game in Happy Valley the week prior. Penn State was also heavily favored to win and advance to the Orange Bowl, which it did 31-14.

Moses suggested that asking fans to travel to two, three or even four playoff games can be a tall order for even the biggest supporters, and that could change the attendance outlook for the Fiesta Bowl.

Of course, this season is a test case for the new system, and Moses traveled to the Orange Bowl’s semifinal game to see how it played out. That uncertainty, though, has led to the thought of attracting more Valley football fans than the event traditionally has.

“We need to make certain that the large portion of our fanbase for these games, year over year, are local people who can drive to State Farm Stadium and who want to be involved in the celebration of college football and not just rely on people coming from the East Coast,” Moses told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo on Wednesday.

“I got to tell you, I have really dear friends from the East Coast, having grown up in New Jersey, who went to Penn State. One in particular I offered tickets to the game to attend — she’s a Penn State grad — (for) her, her husband and her son. She said, ‘I’d love to come, but we’d go broke trying to pay the airfare.’ Imagine doing that three or four times.”

The new 12-team format provides a bye week for the top four conference winners, and none of the four with byes won their respective quarterfinal matchups.

They are playing their third playoff game this week with the opportunity to compete in a fourth. Penn State fell to Notre Dame Thursday evening, while Ohio State played Texas on Friday.

The Fiesta Bowl will host a semifinal next season, but with the new format, it won’t be on New Year’s Eve or Day per usual, which may have an impact on demographics.

“Dec. 31, Jan. 1 tend to be the typical times that the Fiesta Bowl happens,” Moses said. “This coming year, we’re Jan. 8 for the semifinal. People are back to work and back to school and what have you. So again, it’s going to be just imperative that local fans want to come out and attend these games and be part of all of that celebration of college football. We’re going to rely on it. We’re going to need it more and more every year.”

As fans, pundits and executives alike evaluate the new format — from criticizing seeding and the time off conference winners receive to discussing further expansion — Moses said he’d be surprised to see material changes next year.

For changes to be made next season, there needs a unanimous agreement among the College Football Playoff Board of Managers, which includes presidents from Power Four and Group of Five programs. ESPN college football senior writer Heather Dinich reported that changes for next season are unlikely.

“After the 2025 season, going into 2026 I could see that,” Moses said. “I think that probably starts with expansion. I think that probably starts with going to 14 or 16 teams. … I think if you are going to expand it in that way, that gives you the opportunity to clean up some other things as well.”

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The Arizona Diamondbacks claimed catcher Rene Pinto off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles on Friday, the club announced.

Arizona’s 40-man roster is at 39 players, and Pinto is the fourth catcher along with Gabriel Moreno, Adrian Del Castillo and Jose Herrera.

Pinto, 28, has spent the past 12 years in the Tampa Bay Rays’ organization with 82 MLB games played over the past three years. The Orioles claimed him off waivers from Tampa Bay earlier this offseason.

In 154 plate appearances over the past two years, Pinto produced a batting line of .241/.275/.448 with eight home runs and six doubles. In 53 games for Triple-A Durham last year, he slashed .191/.257/.373.

René Pinto spent eight seasons in the Rays farm system.

The 25-year-old hit a home run in his MLB debut Tuesday night.

🎥 @MLBPipeline pic.twitter.com/kKJTx3QsFJ

— The Athletic MLB (@TheAthleticMLB) April 27, 2022

When he makes contact, Pinto hits the ball hard with a career 90.6 mph exit velocity, 45% hard hit rate and 12.9% barrel rate, all of which are well above league average. However, Pinto has a career 36.7% strikeout percentage, way above the MLB average of 22.2%.

That is the 10th highest K rate among players with at least 200 plate appearances over the past three years, a list of 578 hitters.

His defensive metrics don’t jump off the page with a career -3 defensive runs saved and -3 run value via Statcast.

Where does Rene Pinto fit into Diamondbacks’ depth chart

Moreno has established himself as the franchise’s starting catcher, but his backup come Opening Day will be a competition in spring training.

Veteran non-roster invitee Tucker Barnhart won the job last over incumbent backup Herrera, but the D-backs gave the job back to Herrera in July. Del Castillo made his MLB debut on Aug. 7 when Moreno went on the injured list and hit .313 with an .893 OPS in 25 games, although his defense remains a work in progress.

Arizona also signed catcher Aramis Garcia to a minor league deal this offseason.

Pinto will join the group at spring training as the club figures out its plan behind Moreno.

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As the Phoenix Suns continue to tweak lineups and search for answers, once-starting center Jusuf Nurkic was a healthy scratch from Thursday’s 123-115 win over the Atlanta Hawks at Footprint Center.

Mason Plumlee replaced Nurkic in the starting lineup earlier this week and played 22 minutes against Atlanta, and rookie big man Oso Ighodaro received 25 minutes off the bench.

Nurkic’s absence was unrelated to any injury, solely a coaching decision, according to Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro.

“Just went with Mason and Oso tonight,” head coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters postgame. “Just trying to figure out what’s best for the team, find the right combinations, the right group.”

Nurkic has not missed a game without an injury impairment or suspension since his arrival in Phoenix ahead of the 2023-24 season.

This has been an inconsistent campaign for the 7-footer, as he had missed 10 games entering Thursday due to finger and ankle injuries, along with a three-game suspension. He has averaged 8.6 points on 45.4% shooting, both his lowest marks since his 2015-16 season.

Nurkic told Arizona Sports’ Kellan Olson afterward that there was no discussion about the benching turning into a straight benching.

“No. We never communicated but that’s fine,” Nurkic said.

What would he do to keep embracing whatever role he was given?

“No comment, man,” Nurkic added. “Just being (a) pro and get ready. That’s all.”

In Tuesday’s loss against the Charlotte Hornets, Nurkic was a -22 on the floor with eight points and five fouls in 19 minutes.

Plumlee only scored two points but he grabbed 10 rebounds and added four assists against the Hawks, finishing with a +8. Ighodaro scored four points with five rebounds and a block.

Phoenix removed guard Bradley Beal from the starting lineup on Monday, as well, and Beal provided his second 25-point performance in three games as a reserve.

Beal hit 11 of 16 shots from the field to go along with seven rebounds and a dagger steal in the final minute. Grayson Allen scored 23 points off the bench on 7-for-8 shooting, as he and Beal were the first Suns duo to both score 20 points off the bench since January 2022.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NBA postponed the Los Angeles Lakers’ home game against the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday with several massive wildfires burning across the greater Los Angeles area.

It is the second straight day a game slated to be played in downtown Los Angeles has been postponed. The NHL’s Los Angeles Kings were scheduled to host the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night.

The date for the rescheduled games will be announced at a later time. The Kings said tickets for their postponed game against Calgary will be good for the rescheduled date.

Three major fires were burning in areas of the vast Los Angeles metroplex following two days of extraordinary winds. A major threat broke out Wednesday evening in the Hollywood Hills, close to the heart of the entertainment industry, but had been contained by Thursday morning.

Roughly 180,000 people are under evacuation orders, and the fires have consumed about 45 square miles (117 square kilometers) — roughly the size of San Francisco. The Palisades Fire is already the most destructive in Los Angeles’ history.

NFL Playoffs at risk of moving to Arizona due to California fires

The Los Angeles Rams sent out a statement to season-ticket holders and fans Thursday morning reiterating that Monday night’s NFC wild-card round postseason game against the Minnesota Vikings remains set to be played as scheduled Monday night at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

The NFL said Wednesday evening if the game had to be moved, it would take place at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, the home of the Arizona Cardinals.

In 2003, the league moved a Monday night regular-season game between the Miami Dolphins and San Diego Chargers to Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona, due to wildfires.

The Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers both train in areas not threatened by fires, but both teams are monitoring the air quality and its potential impact on their workouts.

The Chargers changed their practice schedule Wednesday to minimize their players’ outdoor time in coastal El Segundo. The Chargers are leaving after practice on Thursday for Houston and their AFC wild-card matchup against the Texans on Saturday.

Coach Jim Harbaugh had the Chargers’ offensive and defensive units practice separately to limit their time on the field. The air quality at the team’s complex was 185 on Wednesday. Anything above 150 is considered unhealthy.

The Rams held their first practice on Thursday. Their headquarters are in Woodland Hills, a neighborhood located about 13 miles north of fire-ravaged Pacific Palisades but separated by the Santa Monica Mountains.

Other impact of the fires in the NBA

Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard abruptly left the team before its game at Denver on Wednesday because of what the team described as personal reasons. Leonard bought a house in Pacific Palisades in 2021.

“You definitely have to take care of home. … Totally had my support 100%,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “Going back, checking on his family and kids, making sure they’re well. And he got back, and they’re doing OK, so just happy and thankful for that.”

College basketball

The West Coast Conference postponed women’s basketball games scheduled for Thursday night at Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount.

Pepperdine was scheduled to face the University of Portland at Firestone Field House on the school’s Malibu campus. Pepperdine canceled classes Wednesday, and access to its coastal campus is restricted.

Loyola Marymount had its game against San Diego postponed as a precautionary measure due to air quality concerns inside Gersten Pavilion while the facility is being renovated.

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Charles Barkley does not apologize for his opinions, and for this one dating back to February 2024, he doesn’t need to.

Barkley was early on the train of the Phoenix Suns needing to bring Bradley Beal off the bench. Well, 11 months later, they decided the same.

But in the context of the Jimmy Butler trade request in Miami, his reported desire to land in Phoenix and the timing and lack of reasoning from the Suns about why they moved Beal to the bench on Monday, it’s clear the change isn’t entirely basketball-motivated.

“Now they’re just being petty,” Barkley told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta on Thursday, adding the Suns could have begun this season with Beal coming off the bench after they added point guard Tyus Jones.

“If I’m Bradley Beal, you know what I’m going to do? I’m going to be petty back at ’em!”

Maybe that’s exactly what Beal was doing when he reminded a reporter Monday that he holds the cards thanks to his no-trade clause.

Beal’s two seasons left after this one worth $110 million appear to be unwanted by the Heat — and it would be surprising if any other team wanted that contract either.

For now, it’d be up to Beal whether he wanted a change of scenery. So far, according to him and his agent, considering leaving hasn’t happened.

Charles Barkley sees why the Suns would trade for Jimmy Butler

Among other things Barkley has hammered in the past two years: That Frank Vogel would be fired (he was) and that he would be the scapegoat when the Suns’ problems weren’t on him.

It is on the players — the Suns’ best ones.

“They don’t have a style of play, but the main thing is they have zero mental toughness,” Barkley said of this 2024-25 version of Phoenix. “It’s like I’ve been watching the same bad movie that I’ve been watching for like the last three years. They got some very talented players but they got no mental toughness, no mental focus.

“You just can’t go and play basketball. You have to hold other guys accountable.”

Barkley doesn’t believe a team’s best player or two can go about his business without commanding the locker room. He has regularly been critical of Kevin Durant’s leadership, and now it’s on to putting Devin Booker in a similar bucket.

“I said to you guys last year, maybe Devin could be that guy,” Barkley said. “I think he’s too nice of a guy, also. He doesn’t hold other guys accountable. I think that’s why they really want to get Jimmy Butler. ‘Cause Jimmy’s not going to have any of this stuff going on here.”

Jimmy Butler brings his own baggage as he tries to depart the Heat

Serving a seven-game suspension for “multiple” instances of conduct detrimental to his team, Butler’s motivation aligns with money.

He’s done a similar dance at stops with Chicago, Minnesota and Philadelphia throughout his career. But it’ll be fascinating to watch over the next month how a Miami front office led by the historically stubborn Pat Riley navigates this messy situation.

Butler has a player option worth $52 million for 2025-26 but is seeking a longer-term deal, something that many in the league believe the Suns are willing to offer him if it can maneuver through the salary cap hoops to land him.

Nevermind that the main issue of Beal needing to waive his no-trade clause to act as a catalyst for any Butler deal to Phoenix.

From Miami’s end, it might not be worth taking any Butler deal and simply letting him walk away to free up cash. Or will the Suns give them enough to swallow a Beal contract? Will a third team get involved?

“I don’t like the way Jimmy’s handled this entire situation. And he’s messing with the wrong guy,” Barkley said. “Pat Riley let Dwyane Wade go. The thing that bothers me about Jimmy, is Jimmy is making $50 million this year and next year, so the Miami Heat have been great to him. You just saw this same thing play out with (Mavericks veteran) Klay Thompson. The Warriors are like, ‘Yeah, we thank you for everything, but we’re not to pay an old guy a max contract.’

“I’m not sure why Jimmy’s mad. … The notion (the Heat) have to extend him and pay him another $50-60 million when he’s going to be past his prime, that’s crazy. He’s not handled this the right way. But the caveat to this thing, man, Bradley Beal, if he doesn’t agree to this trade, there’s not a damn thing the Suns can do.”

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