LeBron James inks 2-year, $97.1 million deal with Lakers

Lebron James has agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension through the 2024-25 season with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agent Klutch Sports annoounced Wednesday. (AP/File)
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Updated 18 August 2022
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LeBron James inks 2-year, $97.1 million deal with Lakers

  • The new deal means the 18-time All-Star will make $46.7 million this season
  • James’ recommitment to the Lakers also silences persistent talk of his possible departure as a free agent or in a trade

LOS ANGELES: LeBron James has agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension through the 2024-25 season with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agent announced Wednesday.

Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul said the league-maximum deal makes James the highest-paid player in NBA history. His new deal includes a player option that would keep the second-leading scorer in NBA history with the Lakers past his 40th birthday in December 2024.

The 37-year-old James is headed into the final year of his most recent contract with the Lakers, who signed the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player and four-time league champion in July 2018. The new deal means the 18-time All-Star will make $46.7 million this season.

Barring injury, James is likely to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s career scoring king this winter. James and the Lakers also still hope to be in contention for another title if James and Anthony Davis can return at full health after an injury-plagued 2021-22 ended without a playoff appearance.

James’ new deal syncs with Davis’ most recent contract extension with the Lakers, allowing both to leave the Lakers or to negotiate new deals in 2024. Both superstars are represented by Klutch.

James’ recommitment to the Lakers also silences persistent talk of his possible departure as a free agent or in a trade. James hasn’t appeared to be going anywhere on social media or in his public appearances, and he praised the hiring of new Lakers coach Darvin Ham.

James has missed significant portions of the season due to injury in three of his four years with the Lakers. He was largely healthy in the elongated 2019-20 season when the Lakers won the franchise’s 17th NBA title in the Florida bubble, and he has been every bit the dominant player of his prime when at full strength in the ensuing two years.

Although his contract status inspired plenty of offseason chatter, James seemed unlikely to relocate after spending the past four seasons of his 19-year career with the storied Lakers. His family is settled in Los Angeles, where his eldest son, Bronny, is a 17-year-old senior and college basketball prospect playing at Sierra Canyon High School in Chatsworth.

James has occasionally said he intends to play on the same team with Bronny when his son reaches the NBA. Although plenty of obstacles remain between the younger James and the NBA, he could be draft-eligible in the summer of 2024.


Bangladesh revamps worker training for Saudi 2034 FIFA World Cup projects

Updated 03 January 2025
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Bangladesh revamps worker training for Saudi 2034 FIFA World Cup projects

  • Govt to prepare training centers with focus on Saudi market demands
  • Reskilling, upskilling services to be provided to migrants already residing in the Kingdom

DHAKA: Bangladeshi authorities are revamping training for prospective migrant workers and will offer upskilling programs to those residing in Saudi Arabia to tap into the labor market ahead of the FIFA World Cup, which the Kingdom will host in 2034.

Last month, the football governing body confirmed that Saudi Arabia had won the bid to host the world’s largest sporting event.

With the bid proposing to hold games across 15 stadiums in five cities, many new migrant workers will be involved in building new sports and transport networks, as well as hotel infrastructure.

In Bangladesh, which has a major expat community in Saudi Arabia, the trend is viewed as an “opportunity” for the country’s migrant workers, according to A.Z.M. Nurul Huq, joint secretary at the employment wing of the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment.

“It’s a huge task, and a lot of construction works will take place targeting this World Cup event. Here lies the opportunity for us as our migrants have been working with much goodwill in many sectors of the Kingdom for many years,” Huq told Arab News.

“Saudi Arabia has to build over a dozen new stadiums, renovate existing ones and develop numerous new accommodation facilities, along with necessary infrastructure and connectivity.”

Some 3 million Bangladeshi nationals live and work in Saudi Arabia. They are the largest expat group in the Kingdom and also the biggest Bangladeshi community outside Bangladesh.

Many are employed in the construction sector as masons, electricians, pipe fitters, plumbers and electricians.

“Bangladeshi migrants can be more actively employed in the construction work for the FIFA World Cup,” Huq said.

“Works are underway for providing reskilling and upskilling services to migrants who are already in the Kingdom. In this way, our workers will be able to secure their jobs and earn more.”

For the past few years, as Saudi Arabia is prioritizing efforts to improve the professional competence of employees under its Vision 2030 program, the expatriates’ ministry has been collaborating with the Kingdom’s skills verification authority, Takamol.

The agency, which manages migrant skill certification based on the needs of Saudi employers, provides Bangladesh’s 113 technical training centers with a list of the Kingdom’s latest workforce requirements.

“Our centers tailor their programs to equip workers with the necessary skills. Upon completing the training, the prospective migrants receive certification through Takamol, which is recognized by Saudi authorities,” said Shah Zulfiquer Haider, deputy secretary at the ministry’s training wing.

As demand is set to increase in line with 2034 World Cup projects, more Bangladeshi training centers will focus on the Saudi market in particular.

“We are planning to strengthen our collaboration with Takamol,” Haider said. “Currently, a dozen technical training centers are preparing skilled workers to meet Saudi Arabia’s demands. We will soon increase the number of training centers, which will produce more skilled migrants tailored to the needs of the Saudi labor market.”


Arsenal must ‘flip coin’ in Premier League title race, says Arteta

Updated 58 min 17 sec ago
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Arsenal must ‘flip coin’ in Premier League title race, says Arteta

  • Mikel Arteta says Arsenal must “flip that coin” as they hunt down Premier League leaders Liverpool in a quest to be crowned champions of England after two agonizing near-misses

LONDON: Mikel Arteta says Arsenal must “flip that coin” as they hunt down Premier League leaders Liverpool in a quest to be crowned champions of England after two agonizing near-misses.
The second-placed Gunners, runners-up to Manchester City over the past two seasons, are six points behind Arne Slot’s rampaging Liverpool, who have a game in hand, having played half their league fixtures.
Stumbles in October and early November left Arsenal playing catch-up and Arteta on Friday pleaded for consistency from his men, who travel to face mid-table Brighton on Saturday.
“We have to show the same level of consistency and a bit more, because the last year we have been the best team in the league, broken various records and still haven’t won a major trophy, so something is missing,” said the Spaniard.
“It’s going to be very thin, small details, you can pick up certain games and situations. But at the end, we’re so close and we just have to flip that coin to the other side to make it happen.
“That’s only going to happen if we do what we have to do and what we can control. The rest is out of our hands.”
Arsenal are bidding to win their first Premier League title since 2004 but are set to be without Bukayo Saka until March after the England winger suffered a hamstring injury against Crystal Palace last month.
“There’s not one player that’s going to play nine games in a row in that position, it’s impossible,” said Arteta.
He added: “We need more threat, we need more players fit and rotation in that unit. In relation to that, we will make decisions and as well, players’ performances, that’s simple.”
The Arsenal boss said he was unsure whether the club would strengthen in the January transfer window.
“The focus is on the players that we have,” he said. “When something is in the market that we can afford and believe is going to have a real impact on the team, we have to be open to that possibility.
“We have the ability to change the squad in the windows, but at the moment the focus is on what we have.”


Slot says Alexander-Arnold ‘fully committed’ to Liverpool amid Real Madrid interest

Updated 03 January 2025
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Slot says Alexander-Arnold ‘fully committed’ to Liverpool amid Real Madrid interest

  • Madrid reportedly wants to sign him and the European champions were reportedly rebuffed when they made an initial enquiry about Alexander-Arnold in late December

LIVERPOOL: Trent Alexander-Arnold is fully committed to Liverpool, manager Arne Slot said Friday, amid interest in the England right back from Real Madrid.
Alexander-Arnold’s contract with Liverpool expires at the end of the season so he is now free to sign a pre-contract agreement with another club if he wishes.
Madrid reportedly wants to sign him and the European champions were reportedly rebuffed when they made an initial enquiry about Alexander-Arnold in late December.
Slot was asked about the defender’s situation in a news conference ahead of Liverpool’s match against Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday, and he said he had had a conversation with Alexander-Arnold but would not divulge any details.
Asked if Alexander-Arnold would be staying at Liverpool beyond January, Slot only said: “I can tell you he is playing on Sunday, and hopefully he brings the same performances he brought in the past half-year.
“Because everybody saw how great a first half of the season he had, how much he is here, how much he wants to win here. I see him on the training ground every day ... he is fully committed to us.”
Slot is sure Madrid’s pursuit of Alexander-Arnold isn’t affecting the defender.
“If it would destabilize players at Liverpool that other people talk about them, then we would really have a problem,” Slot said, “because if you play for one of the biggest clubs in the world, everybody always, for 12 months long, will talk about you, sometimes in relation to other clubs.
“That happens so, so, so many times for our players, so if that destabilizes them then we really would have had a problem, not only now but the past six months.”
Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk also are out of contract at Liverpool at the end of the season.


Young Maphaka makes debut as South Africa win toss and bat 1st in 2nd Test against Pakistan

Updated 03 January 2025
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Young Maphaka makes debut as South Africa win toss and bat 1st in 2nd Test against Pakistan

  • The 18 years and 270 days old broke Paul Adams’ South Africa record of youngest Test player
  • South Africa made three changes after sealing its place in June’s World Test Championship final

CAPE TOWN: Kwena Maphaka became the youngest South African to make a Test debut as the Proteas won the toss and elected to bat in the second and final Test against Pakistan on Friday.
The 18 years and 270 days old Maphaka broke Paul Adams’ South Africa record of youngest Test player, who played his first Test against England in 1995 at the age of 18 years and 340 days.
South Africa made three changes after sealing its place in June’s World Test Championship final with a dramatic two-wicket win in the first Test at Centurion inside four days.
Australia, India and Sri Lanka all still in the race for the Lord’s WTC final against South Africa in June. Australia could advance to face South Africa if it wins the fifth Test against India in Sydney.
“It’s hot and we expect the wicket to break up,” South Africa captain Temba Bavuma said at the coin toss. “We’ve had time to wrap around what we’ve achieved, the preparations for this Test have been the priority … a chance to finish off with a good note.”
Fast bowler Mohammad Abbas brought Pakistan close to its first Test win in South Africa in 18 years with 6-54 in the second innings at Centurion but tailenders Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen shared a half century ninth-wicket stand and quashed the visitors hopes.
The home team, which has six successive Test wins, opted to go with the express pace of Maphaka in place of Dane Paterson, who was dropped after picking up his second successive five-wicket haul at Centurion.
Corbin Bosch was left out after making a stunning Test debut in the first Test where he took a wicket with his first ball and then made a scintillating unbeaten half century in the first innings which gave South Africa a match-winning lead of 90 runs.
Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj has recovered from a groin injury and replaced Bosch. Opening batter Tony de Zorzi had a thigh strain and was replaced by Wiaan Mulder as the all-rounder recovered from a finger injury and returned to the playing XI.
Pakistan, which has won just two of its last nine Test matches in this WTC cycle, once again went without a specialist spinner. It rested fast bowler Naseem Shah and brought in left-arm fast bowler Mir Hamza.
“A bit less grass than usual, but we would have had a bowl,” Pakistan captain Shan Masood said.


Liverpool’s Slot says Man Utd ‘much better’ than league table shows

Updated 03 January 2025
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Liverpool’s Slot says Man Utd ‘much better’ than league table shows

  • Arne Slot says crisis-hit Manchester United are “much, much better” than their shocking position in the Premier League suggests

LIVERPOOL: Arne Slot says crisis-hit Manchester United are “much, much better” than their shocking position in the Premier League suggests as he prepares his Liverpool team for a clash against their fierce rivals on Sunday.
Liverpool are six points clear at the top of the Premier League table — and are hot favorites to land a 20th English top-flight crown, which would pull them level with record-holders United.
United, by contrast, are 14th in the table after five defeats in their past six league games under new manager Ruben Amorim.
But Slot, also in his first campaign in England, is adamant he will not take his opponents lightly at Anfield, when asked if he might rest players at Friday’s pre-match press conference.
“No, of course I’m not going to plan to rest any player because it’s a big game and I think it’s for me I said it before the first fixture (a 3-0 win at Old Trafford) and I can say it one more time, that they have much better players in my opinion than maybe the league table shows at the moment.
“I think it’s going to take a while maybe for Ruben Amorim to bring this out of the players... but they will definitely go up and they are much, much, much better than the league table shows at the moment.”
The Dutchman said he had sympathy with his rival in the Old Trafford hot seat, who joined United from Portuguese champions Sporting Lisbon in November.
“I think every manager sympathizes with every other manager, because we all know how much pressure this job brings,” said Slot.
“That’s not different for him than for me, or for any other manager that works in the Premier League, or somewhere else around the world.”
Slot was asked whether he could categorically state that Liverpool would not let Trent Alexander-Arnold leave in the January transfer window, with the defender heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid.
Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and captain Virgil van Dijk are all out of contract at the end of the season and can now talk to foreign clubs.
Slot said Alexander-Arnold was “fully committed” to Liverpool and would be playing on Sunday.
“Hopefully he brings the same performances as he brought in for the last half-year, because I think everybody saw how great a first half of the season he had, how much he is here, how much he wants to win here,” said Slot.”