MediterraneanGrocery Wholesalers in Houston, TX

Reactions

Like

1.1K

Funny

121

Interesting

22

Wow

18

Fire

6

Celebrate

6

Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden did not show up for practice Wednesday, with coach Nick Nurse saying he had no explanation as to why.

Harden, who has sought a trade since picking up his $35.6 million player option for the 2023-24 season, had been expected to participate in Wednesday's practice. Last week, Harden said he could make his preseason debut at home on Friday -- the team's final preseason game -- against the Atlanta Hawks.

"If he's here, we go; if he's not here, we go," Nurse told reporters Wednesday. "... I'm still going on what he said the last time I talked him, that he was going to ramp up and get ready to play Friday. We'll see how it goes."

Harden, after attending a meeting with the team in New York on Sunday, has been in Houston for the past few days, sources told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. The franchise plans to allow Harden the chance to explain his absence before deciding how to handle any punishment, sources told Shelburne.

Harden has been frustrated for months that his wish to be traded to the LA Clippers has yet to be granted. The two teams have talked in recent days, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Wednesday, but that a sizable gap remains between them on a potential Harden deal.

In his only media appearance since arriving at training camp earlier this month, Harden said Friday that he could make his preseason debut this Friday in Philadelphia.

"I'll ramp it up and try to play the last one just to get myself in game situations and get used to the physicality of defenders bumping you and whatnot," Harden said then. "The speed, the tempo, all that good stuff. So I think we've got a good plan in place."

He attended practice Sunday, but then was not at Monday's shootaround or at Monday night's game at the Brooklyn Nets. The 76ers were off Tuesday, setting up Wednesday as the next time he could potentially be on the court with his teammates.

Harden, who has been tied at the hip with 76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey since the latter brought him to the Houston Rockets in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder prior to the 2012-13 season, called Morey a "liar" during a shoe event in China in August.

Harden said Friday that there was no chance of that relationship being repaired, and he repeatedly referred to Morey as "the front office" without saying his name.

"No," Harden said flatly, when asked directly if he thought things could get patched up with Morey. "This is not even about this situation -- this is in life. When you lose trust in someone, it's like a marriage ... you lose trust in someone, you know what I mean? It's pretty simple."

Added Harden later: "Me and the front office had a very, very good relationship for a decade. There was constant communication, you know what I mean? There was no communication once we lost [to Boston in the playoffs]."

Both Harden and Joel Embiid have missed the first three preseason games, with Philadelphia's hope being that the two of them would play Friday against Atlanta.

Keytron Jordan, CBS Sports

The Rangers won't sweep this round. Texas fell to the defending World Series champion Houston Astros Wednesday night, but still hold a 2-1 ALCS series lead. Max Scherzer struggled mightily in his return from a shoulder injury and two Josh Jung home runs were not enough for the Rangers as the Astros overpowered them.

The Philadelphia Phillies, meanwhile, are just two wins away from the 2023 World Series. The Phillies had an emphatic 10-0 victory in NLCS Game 2 over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night. The game was close for five innings, but the Phillies broke it wide open with back-to-back four-run innings.

Three of the four top seeds in these playoffs were knocked out in the LDS round. The 104-win Braves were ousted by the Phillies, the Rangers swept the 101-win Orioles, and the D-backs took out the 100-win Dodgers. The playoff field started with 12 teams, but is now down to its final four. The Marlins, Brewers, Blue Jays and Rays were eliminated in the Wild Card Series.

Below is a look at the complete MLB playoff bracket, and the complete schedule for the playoffs. All games on Fox and FS1 will be streaming on fubo (try for free).

2023 MLB playoff bracket

League Championship Series

Sunday, Oct. 15ALCS Game 1: Rangers 2, Astros 0

Monday, Oct. 16ALCS Game 2: Rangers 5, Astros 4 (Texas leads 2-0)NLCS Game 1: Phillies 5, Diamondbacks 3

Tuesday, Oct. 17NLCS Game 2: Phillies 10, Diamondbacks 0 (Philadelphia leads 2-0)

Wednesday, Oct. 18ALCS Game 3: Astros 8, Rangers 5 (Texas leads 2-1)

Thursday, Oct. 19NLCS Game 3: Diamondbacks vs. Phillies, 5:07 p.m. ET (TBS)ALCS Game 4: Rangers vs. Astros, 8:03 p.m. (FS1)

Friday, Oct. 20ALCS Game 5*: Rangers vs. Astros, 5:07 p.m. ET (FS1)NLCS Game 4: Diamondbacks vs. Phillies, 8:07 p.m. ET (TBS)

Saturday, Oct. 21NLCS Game 5*: Diamondbacks vs. Phillies, 8:07 p.m. ET (TBS)

Sunday, Oct. 22ALCS Game 6*: Astros vs. Rangers, 8:07 p.m. ET (FS1)

Monday, Oct. 23NLCS Game 6*: Phillies vs. Diamondbacks, 5:07 p.m. ET (TBS)ALCS Game 7*: Astros vs. Rangers, 8:03 p.m. ET (Fox/FS1)

Tuesday, Oct. 24NLCS Game 7*: Phillies vs. Diamondbacks, 8:07 p.m. ET (TBS)

World Series

Friday, Oct. 27World Series Game 1: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Saturday, Oct. 28World Series Game 2: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Monday, Oct. 30World Series Game 3: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Tuesday, Oct. 31World Series Game 4: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Wednesday, Nov. 1World Series Game 5*: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Friday, Nov. 3World Series Game 6*: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Saturday, Nov. 4World Series Game 7*: TBD vs. TBD (Fox)

Divisional round scores, schedule

Saturday, Oct. 7ALDS Game 1: Rangers 3, Orioles 2 ALDS Game 1: Astros 6, Twins 4NLDS Game 1: Phillies 3, Braves 0NLDS Game 1: Diamondbacks 11, Dodgers

Sunday, Oct. 8ALDS Game 2: Rangers 11, Orioles 8ALDS Game 2: Twins 6, Astros 2

Monday, Oct. 9NLDS Game 2: Braves 5, Phillies 4 NLDS Game 2: Diamondbacks 4, Dodgers 2

Tuesday, Oct. 10ALDS Game 3: Astros 9, Twins 1ALDS Game 3: Rangers 7, Orioles 1 (Texas wins 3-0)

Wednesday, Oct. 11NLDS Game 3: Phillies 10, Braves 2ALDS Game 4: Astros 3, Twins 2 (Houston wins 3-1)NLDS Game 3: Diamondbacks 4, Dodgers 2 (Arizona wins 3-0)

Thursday, Oct. 12NLDS Game 4: Phillies 3, Braves 1 (Philadelphia wins 3-1)

Wild Card Series scores

Wednesday, Oct. 4Game 2: Rangers 7, Rays 1 (Rangers win 2-0)Game 2: Twins 2, Blue Jays 0 (Twins win 2-0)Game 2: Brewers 5, Diamondbacks 2 (D-backs win 2-0)Game 2: Phillies 7, Marlins 1 (Phillies win 2-0)

Tuesday, Oct. 3Game 1: No. 5 Rangers 4, No. 4 Rays 0 (Rangers lead 1-0)Game 1: No. 3 Twins 3, No. 6 Blue Jays 1 (Twins lead 1-0)Game 1: No. 6 Diamondbacks 6, No. 3 Brewers 3 (D-backs lead 1-0)Game 1: No. 4 Phillies 4, No. 5 Marlins 1 (Phillies lead 1-0)

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- You still might want a jacket the next few mornings, but a huge warm-up is on the way for the afternoons. By Friday high temperatures will be back near 90 degrees, and a surge of moisture brings back warmer mornings and chances for widespread rain next week.

Temperatures Thursday morning will briefly flirt with the upper 50s. Afternoon high temperatures Thursday will be in the mid-to-upper 80s under a partly cloudy sky. West of Houston highs could even touch 90 degrees.

Ragweed and elm tree pollen remain high, so keep that in mind if you have allergies to those pollens..

What is in store for the weekend?

It'll be another nice weekend, but it won't have that fall feel of the last two weekends. High temperatures will flirt with record highs in the 90s both Saturday and Sunday, and the humidity will creep up a notch by Sunday, too.

When could we get more rain?

Next week we're eying moisture from two tropical systems in the Pacific that could send heavy showers and thunderstorms our way. Showers and thunderstorms will be possible as early as Monday, but the highest rain chances will peak on or around Thursday next week. It's too soon to say how much rain we could get, but history teaches us that these Pacific systems can bring high accumulations if a front gets into the mix. By the way, that big influx of moisture will push our low temperatures into the 70s by next Tuesday.

What is happening in the tropics?

We are now in that time of year when we have to pay closer attention to what's happening in the Pacific since those storms can recurve into Mexico and send heavy rains to Texas. Currently, we are monitoring two systems in the Pacific. A storm named Norma and a system just east of Norma that may bring rains to Texas next week. For the latest tropical update, head here: Tropical Update page.

RADAR MAPS:

Southeast Texas

Houston

Harris County

Galveston County

Montgomery/Walker/San Jacinto/Polk/Grimes Counties

Fort Bend/Wharton/Colorado Counties

Brazoria/Matagorda Counties

Have weather tips, videos, and photos?

Send it to ABC13 using the form below. If you have a video or photo to send, terms of use apply. If you don't, just hit 'skip upload' and send the details.

usatsi

If James Harden has a signature move, other than falling down after a 3-point attempt in hopes of luring a phony foul call, it's quitting on his team(s) once he's decided he doesn't want to play for them anymore.

He did it in Houston. He did it in Brooklyn. And now he's doing it in Philadelphia, as according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Harden was a no-show at Sixers practice on Tuesday and has not been with the team since Sunday.

Further reporting from Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports indicates that Harden has gone back to his home in Houston, just as he did when he skipped Sixers media day on Oct. 2. This was the same move Harden pulled during the self-fulfilled end of his tenure in Brooklyn when it was put out that he was injured but later was reported that he was, in fact, back in Houston.

ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reports that Harden was expected at practice on Wednesday and that the 76ers plan to give him the opportunity to explain his "unexcused absence" before deciding on a proper punishment. Shelburne added that Harden "remains frustrated at the lack of progress towards a trade to the Clippers."

Indeed, Fischer reported Tuesday night that it is "increasingly likely" Harden will start the season on the 76ers' roster, as the Clippers have not been willing to bend to Daryl Morey's desired return in a potential trade package.

Following that up, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports that while the Sixers and Clippers have talked, a "sizable gap" remains in their negotiations.

Teams have talked in recent days but a sizable gap remains in 76ers and Clippers negotiations on a James Harden trade, sources tell ESPN. There’s been little movement for months on a deal.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 18, 2023

In case you're wondering how much money Harden could be costing himself by going Ferris Bueller on the Sixers, it could start to add up pretty quickly, even for a guy as wealthy as Harden.

James Harden could be subjected to a $389,082 fine for every preseason and regular season game he misses without the consent of the team. The fine would fall under “failure to render services”.There’s also a minimal fine (starting at $2500)for missing practice.

— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) October 18, 2023

The Sixers open their season at Milwaukee next Thursday. Stay tuned.

Reactions

Like

89

Fire

7

Interesting

1

HOUSTON -- Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud had a handshake with everyone on the team when he was at Ohio State.

When Stroud got the NFL, he wanted to keep that trend going. He now has "25-30" handshakes with his Texans teammates to build chemistry.

The No. 2 pick is fourth in passing yards (1,660), and is ninth in touchdowns (nine), but when he's connected with fellow rookie receiver Tank Dell for scores, their most notable handshake is on centerstage.

Dell and Stroud's handshake revolves around a viral TikTok California dance called the "Squabble." Many NFL players do the squabble dance when they score a touchdown or make a significant defensive play.

The duo developed it during a team bonding trip in L.A. over the offseason.

"When they came out to LA. I brought a couple of my cousins over to our house, and we were all dancing, having a good time," Stroud told ESPN. "Tank was like, 'What's that dance? Bruh, that's hard.'" That was gonna be our handshake. So maybe we just kind of dapped it up and then started doing it."

Now, the rookie duo hit the dance whenever they scored a touchdown, like when Dell did in Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts and the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 3.

"Man, it's crazy because me and C.J. would just be doing anything and just like lock eyes with each other, do the handshake, and just start hitting it out of nowhere," Dell told ESPN. "And this was before the touchdowns came. But we for sure had conversations like when we score our first touchdown, we're going to be turnt. We ain't harp on it because we already knew, you throw a touchdown, we gone meet up and do what we do."

One of Stroud's first handshakes was with third-year wide receiver Nico Collins, who's eighth in receiving yards (547).

"It was kind of one of those QB receiver love," Collins told ESPN. "You gotta have a handshake. CJ is dropping dimes to me. We had to come up with something."