NFL players enter … college football transfer portal???; James Harden returns to Cavaliers

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🤯 Five things to know Friday

1. Multiple NFL players will put their names in the college football transfer portal. It defies everything the NCAA has ever stood for, but, yes, you read that right. The court ruling that granted a fifth year of eligibility to some former college athletes opened Pandora’s box. Running back T.J. Harden, after the Seahawks waived him on Monday, declared his intention to enter the portal and seek another year of college football. Shortly after, Browns tight end Dae’Quan Wright became the first active NFL player to do so. Who’s next? There could be a wave of portal entrances, and we have our eyes on Diego Pavia, who is no stranger to eligibility battles. College football staffers are split on whether this is a good thing or not, while SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is very much not a fan.
2. De’Zhaun Stribling was the star of Thursday’s preseason action. The spotlight heading into Week 2 of the NFL preseason was on Fernando Mendoza, as the No. 1 overall draft pick took over the Raiders’ starting quarterback duties. But after he threw a pick-six and had an otherwise uneventful day, it was the 49ers rookie wide receiver who jumped into the limelight. Stribling, a second-round pick from Ole Miss, showed off quite the connection with signal-callers Brock Purdy and Mac Jones and hauled in four catches for 46 yards across two drives. 
3. James Harden will return to the Cavaliers. Whether he would re-sign with Cleveland was less of a question than the size of his contract. It took a couple of months to get there, but he ultimately came to terms with the team on a three-year, $97 million deal that includes a player option for 2028-29 and a trade kicker. Harden will become the eighth NBA player to surpass $500 million in career earnings by the end of his contract. At 37, this figures to be the final long-term deal of Harden’s career.
4. Huge fights broke out across NFL joint practices. On one hand, this is nothing new. Tempers flare in these settings every year. But at the same time, some of these skirmishes are crossing the line. There are harmless scuffles like the one involving Joe Burrow. And then there are the fights that marred two other practices. The NFL fined the Cowboys and Saints $500,000 each for the tussles that broke out earlier in the week, and the Giants and Dolphins could face a similar fate. New York and Miami removed multiple players from practice following a series of fights and an all-out brawl.
5. The European soccer season begins in earnest this weekend. LaLiga is already on to matchweek 2 (we’re curious how Real Madrid will fare with Jose Mourinho at the helm), and the Premier League, Serie A and Ligue 1 will kick off over the next couple of days. In England, Arsenal begin their title defense as the favorites to once again win the Premier League, and they want even more as they seek an elusive UEFA Champions League crown, too. The Gunners stand atop our preseason Premier League Power Rankings, and behind them, it’s hard to know which of the other contenders will step up.

🏈 Do not miss this: Preseason bowl projections

One of the best parts of the preseason is that anything is possible. Dare to dream! What’s stopping your favorite team from reaching the College Football Playoff? OK, for most teams, that’s a little unrealistic. But who’s to say the bowl game of your dreams is off the table? The postseason picture will come into clearer focus by the week, but for now, our Brad Crawford has a rough idea of what it will look like.

If you’re a Miami fan, you’ll be thrilled to hear Crawford is buying stock in your team. He projects the Hurricanes as the top overall seed in the CFP.

• Crawford: “I was the only voter to rank Miami No. 1 in our CBS Sports 138 rankings earlier this summer, and only one AP voter agreed in the preseason poll. Planting my flag in Coral Gables in this preseason projection was a no-brainer for me, considering who the Hurricanes signed in the transfer portal, the schedule’s favorability, and staff continuity under Mario Cristobal.”

I still love bowl season, even if the transfer portal, CFP and opt-outs have shattered much of what used to make it special. Here are a few of the bowls I look forward to every December and the teams Crawford foresees playing in them:

• Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Toledo vs. North Dakota State
• Hawaii Bowl: East Carolina vs. Hawaii
• Duke’s Mayo Bowl: Florida State vs. Nebraska
• Pop Tarts Bowl: Louisville vs. Houston
• Sun Bowl: Arizona vs. NC State

🏀 NBA Front Office Rankings (Part 2)

Thursday, we unveiled our ranking of the 15 best front offices in the NBA. Those are the braintrusts behind the best rosters in the league and the masterminds that orchestrated this offseason’s splashiest signings and trades. But there are 30 teams in the NBA, and not all of them are run so smoothly.

Our Sam Quinn defined the NBA’s worst front offices as those who operate without a bigger-picture vision. In some cases, they are uncreative, stubborn and lack self-awareness. In others, their organization is not fully aligned, they are not willing to spend what it takes to win or they are flat-out irresponsible.

Sadly, my team ranks almost all the way at the bottom. My beloved Trail Blazers fell a whopping nine spots since the February edition of these rankings, down to No. 28. Here’s why:

• Quinn: “The Blazers of the past several years were far from perfect, but they were on a sensible trajectory. It’s hard not feel as though that trajectory has been upended. The Ja Morant trade was completely incongruous with their prior strategy, and Tom Dundon‘s cost-cutting threatens to deprive this organization of the tools it needs to build a consistent winner.”

Sigh.

Here are a few teams Portland slipped behind since the last time we ranked the front offices:

27. Suns (↓1)
26. Nuggets (↓6)
25. Bucks (↓1)

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

• Welcome to The Show! The best pitching prospect in baseball is about to get the call.
• Oklahoma signed Brent Venables to a lengthy and expensive contract extension.
• Rory McIlroy is part of a five-way tie atop the BMW Championship leaderboard through Round 1.
• No hard feelings: A.J. Brown and Jalen Hurts shared a few moments together at the Patriots-Eagles joint practice. Oh, and Brown made quite a few plays against his former team.
• Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd opened up about their romantic relationship, which they reported is “not a secret.” Fudd, by the way, dropped out of our WNBA Rookie Rankings due to her season-ending surgery.
• Teofimo Lopez Jr. seeks a bounce back, and a third weight class title, in Saturday’s welterweight bout against Rolly Romero.
• Utah sued former assistant coach Freddie Whittingham for leaving to join brother Kyle Whittingham at Michigan.
• The clock is ticking on these MLB players as they continue to fall short of lofty expectations.
• Virginia running back Solomon Beebe was arrested on three misdemeanor animal cruelty charges.
• An injury forced Yair Rodriguez to withdraw from Noche UFC on Sept. 12.
• The WNBA playoffs are just a few weeks away, so we projected all eight seeds.
• Can Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow avoid the quarterback midlife crisis?

📺 What we’re watching this weekend

Friday

⚾ LLWS: California vs. Iowa, noon on ESPN

⛳ BMW Championship: Second round, 3 p.m. on Golf Channel

⚾ LLWS: Washington vs. Texas, 3 p.m. on ESPN

⚽ Coventry City at Arsenal, 3 p.m. on USA Network

⚾ Braves at Brewers, 4:10 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited

⚾ Cardinals at Phillies, 6:40 p.m. on Peacock

🏈 Jets at Steelers, 7 p.m. on NFL Network

🥊 Unified featherweight title: Serrano vs. Manzur, 7 p.m. on TikTok Live

⚾ LLWS: Pennsylvania vs. New Jersey, 7 p.m. on ESPN

⚾ Rays at Orioles, 7:05 p.m. on Apple TV

⚾ Blue Jays at Yankees or Giants at Red Sox, 7:05 p.m. on MLB Network

🏀 Valkyries at Sky or Lynx at Mystics, 7:30 p.m. on Ion

🤼 WWE SmackDown, 8 p.m. on USA Network

⚾ Angels at Rangers, 8:05 p.m. on Apple TV

🏈 Packers at Broncos, 9 p.m. on NFL Network

🏀 Fire at Tempo, 10 p.m. on Ion

⚽ Royals at Wave, 10 p.m. on Prime Video

⚾ Cubs at Mariners or Twins at Padres, 10:10 p.m. on MLB Network

⚾ Pirates at Dodgers, 10:10 p.m. on Peacock

Saturday

⚽ Manchester United at Hull City, 7:30 a.m. on USA Network

⚽ Crystal Palace at Everton, 10 a.m. on USA Network

⚽ Como at Udinese, 12:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network/Paramount+

🏈 Bills at Browns, 1 p.m. on NFL Network

🏀 Big3 All-Star Game, 1 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 1 p.m. on ESPN

⚾ Blue Jays at Yankees, 1:35 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited

🏀 Big3 Championship: Power vs. Ball Hogs, 2 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+

⚾ Braves at Brewers, 2:10 p.m. on MLB Network

⚽ German Supercup: Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Munich, 2:30 p.m. on USA Network

⛳ BMW Championship: Third round, 3 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 3 p.m. on ESPN

⚽ Real Madrid at Espanyol, 3:30 p.m. on ABC

🏈 Giants at Dolphins, 4 p.m. on NFL Network

⚾ Nationals at Marlins, 4:10 p.m. on FS1

👊 UFC Fight Night: Hernandez vs. Rodrigues, 5 p.m. on Paramount+

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 5 p.m. on ESPN

⚽ Reign at Current, 6:30 p.m. on Ion

🏈 Eagles at Patriots, 7 p.m. on NFL Network

🏀 Fever at Liberty, 7 p.m. on Prime Video

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 7 p.m. on ESPN

⚾ Cubs at Mariners or Pirates at Dodgers or Giants at Red Sox, 7:15 p.m. on Fox

⚽ Fire at Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m. on Apple TV

🥊 WBA welterweight title: Romero vs. Lopez, 8 p.m. on DAZN PPV

⚽ Dynamo at St. Louis City, 8:30 p.m. on Apple TV

⚽ Summit at Thorns, 8:45 p.m. on Ion

🏀 Sun at Sparks, 9 p.m. on Prime Video

⚽ Dallas at Whitecaps, 9:30 p.m. on Apple TV

🏈 Cowboys at Cardinals, 10 p.m. on NFL Network

⚽ Timbers at LAFC, 10:30 p.m. on Apple TV

Sunday

⚽ Bournemouth at Manchester City, 9 a.m. on USA Network

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 9 a.m. on ESPN

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 11 a.m. on ESPN

⚽ Liverpool at Newcastle United, 11:30 a.m. on USA Network

⚽ Juventus at Frosinone, 12:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Golazo Network/Paramount+

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 1 p.m. on ABC

⚾ Cardinals at Phillies or Nationals at Marlins, 1:35 p.m. on MLB Network

⚾ Rays at Orioles, 1:35 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited

⚾ Blue Jays at Yankees, 1:35 p.m. on Peacock

⛳ BMW Championship, 2 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+

⚽ Louisville at Stars, 2 p.m. on CBS Sports Network

⚾ LLWS: TBD vs. TBD, 2 p.m. on ESPN

🏁 NASCAR at New Hampshire, 3 p.m. on USA Network

⚾ Giants at Red Sox, 3:10 p.m. on NBC

⚽ Barcelona at Elche, 3:30 p.m. on ABC

🏀 Storm at Wings, 4 p.m. on NBA TV

⚽ Pride at Spirit, 4 p.m. on ESPN2

⚾ Reds at Diamondbacks, 4:15 p.m. on NBC Sports Network

⚽ NYCFC at Revolution, 4:30 p.m. on Apple TV

⚽ Dash at Bay, 6 p.m. on CBS Sports Network

🏀 Fever at Sky, 7 p.m. on NBC

⚽ Sporting Kansas City at Atlanta United, 7 p.m. on Apple TV

⚾ MLB Little League Classic: Braves vs. Brewers, 7:10 p.m. on ESPN

🏈 Seahawks at Titans, 8 p.m. on Fox