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Billy Donovan agreed to become the lead assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs and head coach Mitch Johnson, sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania and Pete Thamel on Thursday.

Donovan, a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2025, joins the Western Conference champions after 11 seasons as an NBA head coach with the Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder, as well as two college basketball national titles with Florida in 2006 and ’07.

Donovan, 61, stepped down in April as head coach of the Bulls after six seasons. The Bulls said at the time that they wanted the longtime coach to remain in Chicago but that they respected his choice.

Sources told ESPN at the time that Donovan planned to continue his coaching career and he would be a viable target moving forward in the NBA landscape.

Donovan received interest from multiple organizations while under contract with the Bulls — such as the New York Knicks last offseason and the University of North Carolina during this past season — but he had maintained his desire to complete the commitment on his contract. He held an option in his contract for next season and stepped down after extensive meetings with team ownership, sources told ESPN in April.

Donovan led the Bulls to a 226-256 record in his six seasons, and they missed the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season this year. Before Chicago, he spent five seasons in Oklahoma City, where he went 243-157 and made the playoffs every year.

Donovan replaces Sean Sweeney, who spent one season with the Spurs before taking the reins as head coach for the Orlando Magic. Donovan was a finalist for the position in Orlando, along with Jeff Van Gundy, sources told Charania.

Sweeney ran San Antonio’s defense last season, helping the Spurs improve from 25th to third in the NBA in defensive rating (110.4). The team’s defensive rating improved in the postseason to 105.6, good for second among playoff participants behind the Knicks (104.5).

Donovan, however, won’t be tasked with taking on Sweeney’s responsibilities. The club brought Donovan aboard for his experience on both ends of the floor, as well as his vast knowledge of the NBA and college games. Donovan and Johnson also share a strong personal relationship, sources told ESPN’s Michael C. Wright.

Donovan’s son, Billy Donovan III, spent time with Johnson in 2017, coaching on the staff of San Antonio’s G League affiliate, the Austin Spurs.

Restricted free agent Tari Eason has agreed to a five-year, $81.5 million deal to return to the Houston Rockets, sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania on Thursday.

The deal is fully guaranteed.

The Rockets selected Eason in 2022 with the 17th pick in the draft, and the 25-year-old played a career-high 25 minutes per game last season, which included 60 games and 34 starts. He averaged 10.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals. One of Houston’s top wing defenders, Eason has bounced back over the past two seasons after missing significant time during his second year in the NBA due to a lower left leg injury that raised questions about his durability.

That likely played a role in the failed negotiations between the sides going into last season. Houston made a significant offer during the negotiations, sources said, but Eason’s side wanted more guaranteed money in the deal.

The sides couldn’t reach an agreement on an extension before the deadline in October, making Eason a restricted free agent and giving Houston the right to match any offer made by another team in free agency.

Eason earned $5.7 million in 2025-26 in the final team option year of his rookie contract and played well for the Rockets in the playoffs, raising his scoring average to 12.8 points on 47.7% shooting.

ATLANTA — — Jordan Walker homered and drove in four runs, Nathan Church hit a tying two-run homer in a seven-run seventh inning and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Atlanta Braves 11-5 on Thursday night.

The Braves led 5-3 before the Cardinals rallied in the seventh. After Church’s homer off Tyler Kinley (4-3), JJ Wetherholt’s run-scoring single off Dylan Lee gave St. Louis the lead. Walker added a run-scoring single in the big inning.

Alec Burleson homered in the ninth and Masyn Winn had three hits and a walk for St. Louis.

Right-hander Gordon Graceffo (6-1) pitched a scoreless sixth as St. Louis won two of three in the series. The Cardinals gave manager Oliver Marmol a win on his 40th birthday.

Dominic Smith drove in three runs with a double in Atlanta’s five-run first inning.

Smith’s liner bounced of St. Louis right-hander Dustin May’s right ankle and down the right-field line. May gave up two more singles before leaving the game. He allowed five runs while recording only two outs.

The Cardinals said May suffered a contusion to his ankle.

Braves right-hander Hurston Waldrep gave up a three-run home run to Walker in the first inning and allowed three runs in 5 1/3 innings in his first major league start since last September against Washington. Waldrep missed the start of the season while recovering from surgery to remove loose bodies from his right elbow.

Atlanta shortstop Jim Jarvis had one hit following his recall from Triple-A Gwinnett, Veteran first baseman Rowdy Tellez was designated for assignment.

CLEVELAND — — Brayan Rocchio hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning that gave the Cleveland Guardians a 6-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series between the top two teams in the AL Central.

Cleveland (46-42) rallied from a three-run deficit and trails Chicago (45-41) by less than a full percentage point atop the division standings.

Pinch-hitter David Fry launched a solo homer in the seventh that trimmed the Guardians’ deficit to 5-4.

White Sox reliever Grant Taylor (4-2) walked Rhys Hoskins leading off the ninth. Kahlil Watson flied out to center before Rocchio pulled a 99 mph fastball down the right-field line for his sixth home run this season.

Tim Herrin (1-3) pitched a perfect inning for the win.

Travis Bazzana hit an RBI double and Rocchio drew a bases-loaded walk in the third to give Cleveland a 2-0 lead.

Sam Antonacci delivered an RBI double and scored on Kyle Teel’s two-run double to put Chicago ahead 3-2 in the fifth.

Braden Montgomery doubled leading off the sixth and Chase Meidroth’s two-run homer made it 5-2, chasing Guardians starter Slade Cecconi.

Daniel Espino, Shawn Armstrong and Herrin combined to allow one hit in four innings of scoreless relief.

Cleveland loaded the bases against reliever Sean Newcomb in the sixth and cut it to 5-3 on an RBI groundout by Chase DeLauter.

Fry connected off Brandon Eisert in the seventh for his second pinch-hit homer this year.

White Sox starter Davis Martin gave up two runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings without striking out a batter. He walked five and threw only 37 of his 73 pitches for strikes.

LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani will be in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ lineup when he makes his pitching start Friday, and Dalton Rushing will be his catcher.

Eight days ago, when Rushing was behind the plate in Minneapolis, Ohtani became visibly irritated with his pitch selection and his passivity in challenging pitches, at one point vehemently tapping his head to trigger a video review of a borderline call.

As the game went on, Rushing, 25 and in his second year in the big leagues, was consoled in the dugout by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and first baseman Freddie Freeman, among others. Afterward, Rushing accepted the blame and called it “embarrassing that I need support like that.”

Ohtani has a 4.34 ERA in three starts pitching to Rushing and a 0.74 ERA with Will Smith as his catcher.

With Smith out for an undetermined amount of time because of a neck injury, the Dodgers have little choice but for Ohtani and Rushing to get on the same page.

“I think they will be,” Roberts said Thursday before the start of a four-game series against the San Diego Padres. “I think they will be more than they were his last start. They don’t think the same, so it takes time. But Dalton understands that this is what he signed up for. The job of a catcher is to be a servant to the pitcher. That’s the bottom line.”

Ohtani was originally scheduled to start Wednesday in Sacramento, but the Dodgers pushed his start back two days so that, they said, he could face the Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks leading up to the All-Star break, instead of the Athletics and Colorado Rockies. However, giving him additional time in between starts is also helpful, considering the left knee that forced him to miss a game and continues to require maintenance.

Roberts said he spoke to Ohtani earlier Thursday and that he’s “feeling better every day.”

“Just the way he’s moving the last couple days has been better,” Roberts said.

CLEVELAND — Brayan Rocchio hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning that gave the Cleveland Guardians a 6-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series between the top two teams in the AL Central.

Cleveland (46-42) rallied from a three-run deficit and trails Chicago (45-41) by less than a full percentage point atop the division standings.

Pinch hitter David Fry launched a solo homer in the seventh that trimmed the Guardians’ deficit to 5-4.

White Sox reliever Grant Taylor (4-2) walked Rhys Hoskins leading off the ninth. Kahlil Watson flied out to center before Rocchio pulled a 99 mph fastball down the right-field line for his sixth home run this season.

Tim Herrin (1-3) pitched a perfect ninth inning for the win.

Travis Bazzana hit an RBI double and Rocchio drew a bases-loaded walk in the third to give Cleveland a 2-0 lead.

Sam Antonacci delivered an RBI double and scored on Kyle Teel’s two-run double to put Chicago ahead 3-2 in the fifth.

Braden Montgomery doubled leading off the sixth and Chase Meidroth’s two-run homer made it 5-2, chasing Guardians starter Slade Cecconi.

Daniel Espino, Shawn Armstrong and Herrin combined to given up one hit in four innings of scoreless relief.

Cleveland loaded the bases against reliever Sean Newcomb in the sixth and cut it to 5-3 on an RBI groundout by Chase DeLauter.

Fry connected off Brandon Eisert in the seventh for his second pinch-hit homer this year.

White Sox starter Davis Martin gave up two runs and six hits in 3⅓ innings without striking out a batter. He walked five and threw only 37 of his 73 pitches for strikes.

ARLINGTON, Texas — — Nathan Eovaldi weathered a three-run Detroit uprising after taking a no-hitter into the fifth inning and Elias Díaz, Josh Smith and Evan Carter hit solo home runs to help the Texas Rangers beat the Tigers 10-4 on Thursday night.

The Rangers matched a season high with 17 hits en route to their seventh victory in eight games. The Tigers arrived at Globe Life Field after sweeping three games at Yankee Stadium.

Eovaldi (9-7) allowed only one walk through four innings and matched a season high with nine strikeouts in winning his fourth consecutive start, pitching five-plus innings. Detroit’s Colt Keith led off the fifth by homering on an 0-2 cut fastball above the strike zone. Hao-Yu Lee added a two-run homer that barely cleared the wall in left, just beyond Alejandro Osuna’s reach.

Eovaldi allowed five hits in the fifth inning and was pulled leading 5-3 after Riley Greene led off the sixth with a double. Peyton Gray, Texas’ third pitcher in the sixth, struck out Lee with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Díaz’s home run came in Texas’ three-run second inning, his second in two games.

Smith, recalled from Triple-A Round Rock on Wednesday after previously missing 37 games primarily due to viral meningitis, hammered a first-pitch fastball for his first homer of the season and his first career pinch-hit homer in the sixth.

Carter, activated from the injured list on Sunday, homered in the eighth.

Osuna and Nicky Lopez each had three hits.

Framber Valdez (4-6) allowed five runs on nine hits and two walks in five innings. That ended Detroit’s club-record 35-game streak of starting pitchers allowing no more than four runs.

SEATTLE — Mariners center fielder Julio Rodriguez was removed from Thursday night’s 1-0 win over the Los Angeles Angels after being hit in the back of the helmet by a thrown ball.

Rodriguez is in concussion protocol and will be re-evaluated Friday, manager Dan Wilson said.

Rodriguez was running from first to second on a ground ball in the first inning when first baseman Nolan Schanuel fielded it and tried to throw to second to start a double play. The throw struck Rodriguez as he slid into the bag, and he hustled to third base after the ball bounced into the outfield.

After being checked out by Wilson and a team athletic trainer, Rodriguez remained on third base and played a half-inning in the field. But he was pulled in the top of the third inning for Victor Robles.

The Mariners had to make another move in the top of the fifth when Weston Wilson took over in center field for Robles, who had been hit by a pitch in the bottom of the third.

Rodriguez, a three-time All-Star, played in a career-high 160 games last season. He has played in 87 of Seattle’s 88 games this season.

SEATTLE — — Bryce Miller took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and the Seattle Mariners edged the Los Angeles Angels 1-0 on Thursday night to finish a three-game sweep.

Cal Raleigh coaxed a bases-loaded walk from rookie starter Walbert Ureña with two outs in the sixth to force home the only run. Seattle stayed tied with the Texas Rangers for first place in the AL West at 45-43.

Andrés Muñoz pitched a shaky ninth for his 16th save. Muñoz gave up a leadoff walk and two singles but retired Wade Meckler on a grounder with two runners aboard to end it.

Zach Neto walked to begin the inning but got picked off at first base attempting to steal second.

Lil Wayne, Karl-Anthony Towns top attendees at Michael Rubin’s 2026 ‘White Party’

Following a hiatus last year, the Fanatics CEO welcomed guests at the Hamptons ranging from Kevin Durant to Cardi B.

In this year’s edition, artists such as Travis Scott, Quavo and Jay-Z were present while athletes such as Draymond Green, Justin Jefferson and Jared McCain were dripped out in their all-white fits.

“We were debating the dates. We were certainly aware of that date, but we didn’t change it because of that date …” Rubin told People Magazine. “But we were aware of that date and we didn’t want to have people have to choose.”

In years pasts, current and former athletes such as Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Odell Beckham Jr., Kylian Mbappe, James Harden and Joe Burrow have been among the sports luminaries to party with Rubin. He didn’t hold an event last year but did so each year from 2021 to 2024. Rubin tends to host the party on the Fourth of July but moved it up this year, presumably due to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding being held on July 3.