Lionel Messi continues to make progress toward his return from injury for Argentina during Copa América 2024.

Messi returned to practice with his teammates Monday in Miami, Argentina’s national team announced before traveling to Houston for a quarterfinal matchup Thursday against Ecuador at NRG Stadium.

It was Messi’s first full practice since he sustained a right groin/adductor injury against Chile June 25, causing him to watch Argentina’s 2-0 win over Peru from the bench Saturday night. Messi was training with a trainer separately from his teammates before Monday’s encouraging update.

Messi, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner and 2022 World Cup champion, was also named to the MLS All-Star Game roster Monday.

Will Messi play vs. Ecuador in Copa América quarterfinal?

Messi’s status for the Copa América quarterfinal match remains in question. It’s unclear whether he’ll return to the starting lineup or come off the bench for the Ecuador match.

How to watch Argentina vs. Ecuador live stream?

The Argentina vs. Ecuador match on Thursday will be broadcast by FOX (in English) and on Univision/TUDN (in Spanish).

How has Messi performed during Copa América?

Messi has been considered day to day with the injury, but Monday’s development is a positive step.

Messi had an assist in Argentina’s 2-0 win in their Copa América opener against Canada, but scoreless through two matches.

Which teams are playing in Copa América quarterfinals?

Argentina advanced to the quarterfinals out of Group A with victories over Canada, Chile and Peru.

Ecuador reached the quarterfinals after a scoreless draw with Mexico on Sunday, while Venezuela finished first in Group B.

Uruguay leads Group C, and will play the U.S. men’s national team later Monday at 9 p.m. inside Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Panama and Bolivia will also be in action at 9 p.m. in Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Fla.

The U.S. needs at least a draw and to maintain a goal-differential tiebreaker to edge Panama for the second quarterfinal spot in the group. The U.S. has a two-goal lead entering the match.

Colombia leads Group D and will play second-place Brazil on Tuesday at 9 p.m. inside Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Brazil has four points and a three-goal differential lead over third-place Costa Rica, who plays Panama at the same time at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas.

The final four days of the U.S. Olympic track and field trials featured world-leading marks, a competitive men’s and women’s 200, Grant Holloway making a statement, Chase Jackson throwing a season-best in the shot put and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone basically running by herself en route to another world record.

There were many highlights during the last half of the trials. USA TODAY Sports explores some highlights and lowlights from the final four days in our winners and losers.

Winners

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone breaks own world record

It was inevitable that McLaughlin-Levrone would headline this list. McLaughlin-Levrone is must-see TV every time she steps out on the track.

Running in her signature event, McLaughlin-Levrone is making the 400-meter hurdles look easy. She was in first place over all 10 hurdles. By the time she got to the homestretch, her only competition was her own world record.

When McLaughlin-Levrone crossed the finish line she had indeed broken her own world record, running a 50.65. She’s the only woman in history to run sub-51 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles, and she’s done it twice.

Grant Holloway on a mission

Holloway sent a message to the Paris Olympic participants in the men’s 110-meter hurdles. Holloway looked unbeatable at the Olympic trials.

The three-time world champion saved his best for the final. Holloway ran a world-leading time of 12.86 seconds to win gold. It’s the second-fastest time he’s ever run.

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Holloway looks to be on a mission this year for his first Olympic gold. He placed second at the Tokyo Olympics.

Noah Lyles after sprint double in Paris

Lyles was in USA TODAY Sports’ first winners and losers edition. He earned a winner’s spot again after his gold-medal performance in the 200.

Lyles was trailing Kenny Bednarek at the 100-meter mark. But Lyles had another gear during the final 75 meters that Bednarek couldn’t match as he sped by Bednarek and finished first with a meet record and world-leading time of 19.53.

Lyles’ acceleration and closing phases are as good as it gets in the sprints.

The sprinter is headed to Paris with all the confidence in the world. He’s the reigning world champion in the 100 and 200, and just won both events at the U.S. trials.

Masai Russell’s record breaking performance

Russell had a coming out party in the 100-meter hurdles. The 24-year-old won in what was a very competitive 100 hurdles final.

Russell’s gold-medal winning time of 12.25 is the fastest time in the world this year and it broke Gail Devers’ 24-year-old meet record.

Gabby Thomas victorious in 200

Thomas ran the fastest 200-meter time in the world on Friday. On Saturday, Thomas validated that she’s a gold-medal candidate.

Thomas was victorious in a loaded field in the women’s 200 final, running a 21.81.

The Harvard product ran out of lane eight, she led around the turn and finished in first by about two strides ahead of the field.

Losers

Eugene, Oregon

Eugene’s Hayward Field, at the University of Oregon, has hosted the trials eight times. Eugene is affectionately known as TrackTown, USA. But despite the city’s rich track and field history, many on site were feeling Eugene fatigue.

Hotel lodging is limited, traveling to Eugene’s airport can be difficult and there isn’t much to do after the track and field competitions.

Los Angeles is hosting the 2028 Olympics. Even if there’s questions about whether the LA Coliseum will be ready to host, seems like a perfect time for USA Track and Field to have the 2028 Olympic trials in Southern California.

Changing of the guard

There’s a youth movement in the 100-meter hurdles. Former world champion Nia Ali, 35, and American-record holder Keni Harrison, 31, were unable to qualify in the event. Ali finished fourth and Harrison crossed the finish line in sixth.

Masai Russell (24), Alaysha Johnson (27) and Grace Stark (23) who finished first, second and third, respectively, are all first-time Olympians.

Unlucky

Christian Coleman

Coleman came into the trials as a medal favorite in the 100. But he missed the final qualifying spot when he finished in fourth place. Coleman had an opportunity again to make the team in his secondary event, the 200. However, Coleman finished at the dreaded fourth spot with a time of 19.89, just missing the three automatic qualifying spots.

The is some good news for Coleman, though. He’ll likely be selected for Team USA’s 4×100 relay pool.

The NHL announced on Monday former general manager Stan Bowman, executive Al MacIsaac and head coach Joel Quenneville have been reinstated by the league and can immediately seek employment, less than three years after the bombshell sexual assault report within the Chicago Blackhawks organization.

Bowman, MacIsaac and Quenneville all left their jobs in October 2021 after an investigation done by an outside law firm determined several Blackhawks team leaders failed to respond promptly to allegations that an assistant coach sexually assaulted a player in 2010. The player later revealed himself to be Kyle Beach, and the coach was revealed to be video coach Brad Aldrich.

The three men have been ineligible to work for any NHL team as a result of their ‘inadequate response,’ the league said, of the sexual assault allegations, but the NHL said the individuals have ‘acknowledged that and used his time away from the game to engage in activities which, not only demonstrate sincere remorse for what happened, but also evidence greater awareness of the responsibilities that all NHL personnel have.’

‘Each has made significant strides in personal improvement by participating in myriad programs, many of which focused on the imperative of responding in effective and meaningful ways to address alleged acts of abuse,’ the league said in a statement. ‘The league expects that they will continue this commitment in any future capacity with the NHL and/or one of our Clubs.’

The individuals are allowed to pursue job opportunities, but they cannot be employed until July 10.

The incident happened a month before the Blackhawks won their first of three championships in a six-season span.

The findings led to Bowman stepping aside as the Blackhawks general manager and president of hockey operations, as well as his position as Team USA men’s ice hockey GM. MacIsaac, senior vice president of hockey operations, also left the team. Quenneville was head coach of the Florida Panthers when the findings were released, and he resigned from his position after meeting with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.

Beach also accused the NHL and the U.S. Center for SafeSport of denying an investigation.

“(The NHL) let me down and they’ve let others down as well,’ he said in an interview with TSN. ‘But they continue to try and protect their name over the health and well-being of the people who put their lives on the line every day to make the NHL what it is.’

In November 2023, a second former player in the Blackhawks organization filed a lawsuit against the team, alleging that it mishandled claims of sexual abuse levied against Aldrich during the 2009-10 NHL season.

A general classification win may be out of reach for the American riders in the Tour de France, but ending a three-year stage win drought is well within their grasp. 

Sepp Kuss, 29, was the last American to win a stage when he took Stage 15 of the 2021 Tour de France. The Durango, Colorado native is the best rider the country has seen in a decade. Last year, Kuss finished as the top American in 12th place at the Tour de France and won the 2023 Vuelta a España to become the first American Grand Tour winner since Chris Horner won the same race in 2013. However, although slated to be ​​Jonas Vingegaard’s top support rider for the 2024 Tour de France, Kuss withdrew from this year’s edition after testing positive for COVID-19 in the lead-up to the race. 

Greg LeMond remains the only American to have ever won the general classification category at the Tour de France, accomplishing the feat in 1986, 1989 and 1990. American Lance Armstrong won the Tour from 1999-2005 but was subsequently stripped of his seven Tour de France titles for doping by the International Cycling Union in 2012.

So, who is left in this year’s race to give the United States a shot at glory — at least for one stage. Here’s a look at the three Americans competing at the 2024 Tour de France.

Matteo Jorgenson (UCI WorldTeam Visma-Lease a Bike)

Jorgenson, 25, is having a breakthrough season with an overall victory at Paris-Nice 2024 and a second-place finish at the 2024 Criterium du Dauphine.

Jorgenson is a strong contender in this year’s race for the white jersey, which recognizes the best young rider under 26. A versatile rider, Jorgenson — alongside Kuss — is poised to be USA’s best hope for a future Tour de France general classification winner. But for now, he will take over from Kuss to play the chief support role for teammate Jonas Vingegaard, who won the 2022 and 2023 Tour de France. 

This year will be Jorgenson’s third Tour de France. The Idaho-raised cyclist finished 20th in the general classification standings in 2022 and had to withdraw in 2023 due to injuries sustained in a crash along the route.

Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost)

A standout mountain biker during his young adulthood in California, 27-year-old Powless transitioned to the road and turned professional in 2018. 

Powless made history in 2020 as the first Native American to compete in the Tour de France. Since then, he has continued to improve and is coming off his strongest season yet with overall victories at the 2023 Grand Prix La Marseillaise and Étoile de Bessèges. 

In Kuss’ absence, Powless is the top American prospect for pulling off a stage win as he is known for his success with breakaways and aptitude at climbing. Last year, Powless led the King of the Mountain classification for the first half of the Tour but was ultimately edged out by Italy’s Giulio Ciccone. This year, he’ll be looking to finally secure the polka-dotted jersey by the end of the Grand Boucle. 

Sean Quinn

Hailing from Los Angeles, Quinn is a 24-year-old, up-and-coming cyclist riding in his first Tour de France to support Richard Carapaz, team leader of EF Education-EasyPost. Hot off a victory at the U.S. National Road Race Championships in May, Quinn is a strong all-around rider who excels at climbing and can produce strong sprinting kicks. Quinn will certainly be one to watch as he develops in the coming years.

LAS VEGAS — Of course Caitlin Clark talked trash. Kate Martin expected nothing less. 

It was May 25, and the WNBA rookies − Clark of the Indiana Fever, Martin of the Las Vegas Aces − were matched against each other for the first time in their professional careers. Martin was trying to be serious. Clark wasn’t. 

‘Man, she’s not very good at basketball isn’t she?’ Clark said to the official as he handed the ball to Martin, who suppressed a smile. 

Later, it was Clark’s turn to smile. When the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft realized she was about to guard her best friend and former Iowa teammate, she couldn’t stop grinning. A photo of the moment went viral, the latest keepsake for the midwestern natives whose love of basketball has led them on a journey no one saw coming. 

That they get to experience it together makes it that much sweeter. 

‘It’s so rare in this league for two people from the same team to both make it, unless you go to UConn or South Carolina or something, there’s so many of them in the league,’ Martin told USA TODAY Sports, with a laugh. ‘It’s really nice to have one of your best friends going through a similar experience. She knows exactly what I mean every time I say something; it’s hard to talk to other friends (about the WNBA) because they just don’t understand our jobs.’ 

The two meet again Tuesday when the Aces host the Fever (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Sometimes it’s still unreal to Martin that this is her reality now.

‘I never would have thought I’d be in this position,’ she said. ‘I always knew Caitlin was going to change the world, but I’m super grateful to be here, too.’

‘She knows how to play with superstars’

Long before her name was called in April, everyone knew Clark would make history as the No. 1 pick, perhaps the most heralded rookie to ever join the league. Martin was in the crowd to support Clark. But when her name was called in the second round − pick No. 18 overall to the two-time defending champion Aces − everyone was surprised. 

Everyone except Clark. 

Clark loves to gush about Martin, her roadtrip roommate when the two were at Iowa, leading the Hawkeyes to back-to-back Final Fours. 

‘It’s kind of rare at the pro level what she can bring to a team, but she’s one of those people that’s not gonna care if she scores points, not gonna care how many rebounds she has or how many assists she has − she’s just gonna come in and play as hard as she possibly gonna, gonna be the best teammate she can be and those are the type of people you want in your locker room,’ Clark said. 

But Martin’s contributions are more than just a ‘glue guy,’ Clark emphasized. 

‘She makes shots, she makes 3s, she always has her feet ready,’ Clark said. ‘From a basketball standpoint at times she could get a little overlooked. But she could do some amazing things − she can do some things I couldn’t do! Her mid-post game is really good, she has a nice little fadeaway, she has a high basketball IQ. Those are the type of players (Aces coach) Becky (Hammon) wants. I think she fits that system perfectly.’ 

Hammon agrees. 

The two-time WNBA champion coach hoped that everyone else would be so enamored with Clark, the all-time scoring leader in the history of college basketball, that they’d overlook Martin, allowing the Aces to draft her. 

‘Caitlin Clark is amazing, I love watching that kid, but − you don’t take one person and put their team in the Final Four,’ Hammon said. ‘You’ve got to have other pieces. To me, Kate was the next most important piece. She knew how to impact a game without having all the plays called for her. On this team, I’m not calling plays for Kate Martin. She knows how to play with superstars.’ 

Those superstars, led by two-time MVP A’ja Wilson, have embraced Martin. The Aces’ pranks on Martin − they pretended to leave her behind at dinner, forcing her to chase the team bus; and for their preseason game against Puerto Rico in South Carolina, Wilson made Martin dress head-to-toe in Gamecocks gear − have been all over social media. But so have tender moments, like when Wilson bought Martin a cake and tiara to celebrate her 24th birthday. 

The consensus throughout the WNBA: No one is having more fun in her rookie season than Martin.

Caitlin Clark, Kate Martin in different roles

Clark and Martin are in dramatically different roles as pros. Clark, who leads all rookies in points (16.2 per game) and assists (6.9), is the star of the show in Indiana, drawing double-teams and tons of media attention. Martin comes off the bench, the quintessential role player. She’s averaging 3.9 points and 2.2 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per game.

They talk every day, usually via text message, and spend time together whenever their chaotic schedules allow. Their favorite pastime: Exploring new restaurants and trying different desserts. Clark is a sucker for warm chocolate chip cookies. Martin loves anything with lemon and blueberry. 

Though their lives are ruled by basketball, they try to not talk hoops constantly. Martin feels for Clark, who has become so famous she can barely leave her apartment. Clark’s play has been picked apart to the nth degree throughout her first six weeks in the league, an exhausting reality that comes with her platform. 

When either one of them needs a lift, the other is there to provide a pep talk. 

‘I’ve had my down moments and she’s hyped me up, just like she did at Iowa,’ Martin said. ‘I’ve never been in Caitlin’s shoes and I never will be, she’s on a completely different stage than me, but as much as I can be a listening ear and encourage her back, I try to do that.’ 

Lisa Bluder, the now-retired Iowa coach who recruited Martin and Clark to Iowa City, has been in the arena each time her former Hawkeyes have played each other. Watching them on the court together — plus Las Vegas center Megan Gustafson, a 2019 Iowa grad — was “so rewarding,” Bluder said. 

‘When you see your athletes achieve their dreams, that’s what coaching is all about,’ Bluder said. ‘I absolutely love it. They’re doing what they love to do. And when all three of them were on the floor at the same time, that was a pretty cool moment.’ 

Bluder knows, too, how freeing it is for Clark to talk with Martin, someone Clark can let her guard down around. Every move Clark makes and every word she says is scrutinized. That would weigh on anyone, especially a 22-year-old. While Bluder is thrilled that Martin has found a place in the WNBA, she’s equally happy that because of it, ‘Caitlin has someone she can talk to who gets it − I think she really needs that.’  

Following each other’s success from afar

Clark and Martin might try to avoid having basketball dominate their conversations, but they do follow each other’s stat lines closely. Martin signed up for WNBA league pass to watch all of Clark’s games, and Clark is often checking the box score before and after pregame to see how Martin is playing. They analyze each other’s contributions and share tips; Martin said she especially appreciates any and all advice from Clark, who is renowned for her excellent hoops IQ. They also discuss dress strategy, a nod to the recent WNBA trend of photographing players’ pregame looks. 

‘We always send each other photos like ‘wait, do you like this outfit?’ ‘ Martin said, laughing. ‘That’s a fun little piece about the WNBA. We were both nervous (at the beginning of the season) like, ‘What are we going to wear? We always just wear sweatpants!’ ‘

The Aces and Fever will meet twice more, with games scheduled in Indianapolis on Sept. 11 and Sept. 13. Clark and Martin can’t wait. 

And yes, there’s sure to be trash talk in those matchups, too. That’s how they like it. 

Email Lindsay Schnell at lschnell@usatoday.com and follow her on social media @Lindsay_Schnell

The reigning NBA champs are set to be available for sale, potentially fetching a record price for an NBA team.

The majority owners of the Boston Celtics – fronted by longtime managing partner Wyc Grousbeck – will explore the sale of the franchise, a person with knowledge of their plans told USA TODAY Sports.

The person requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the potential sale.

The team confirmed the decision Monday in a statement.

‘Boston Basketball Partners L.L.C., the ownership group of the Boston Celtics, announced today its intention to sell all the shares of the team,’ the team said in the statement. ‘The controlling family of the ownership group, after considerable thought and internal discussion, has decided to sell the team for estate and family planning considerations.

All things Celtics: Latest Boston Celtics news, schedule, roster, stats, injury updates and more.

‘The managing board of the ownership group expects to sell a majority interest in 2024 or early 2025, with the balance closing in 2028, and expects Wyc Grousbeck to remain as the Governor of the team until the second closing in 2028.’

The Celtics just won the 2024 NBA championship – their first since 2008 and 18th overall breaking a tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for most in league history.

Grousbeck’s father, H. Irving Grousbeck, and Steve Pagliuca are also managing partners of the Celtics.

The Celtics are one of the NBA’s flagship franchises and a significant part of the league’s history. 

ESPN was the first to report the news Monday afternoon.

If sold, the Celtics may shatter the record for most expensive NBA franchise sale, topping the $4 billion that Matt Ishbia paid for the Phoenix Suns in December 2022, possibly exceeding a $5 billion valuation in a sale.

In November 2023, former Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban sold his majority stake in the franchise for a value of approximately $3.5 billion.

Boston trails only the Los Angeles Lakers ($6.4 billion), New York Knicks ($6.6 billion) and Golden State Warriors ($7.7 billion) on the list of most valuable franchises, per Forbes.

The Celtics are returning most of their core, led by Jayson Tatum and NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Jaylen Brown, for the 2024-25 season, keeping them as one of the top contenders. Their operating costs, however, are climbing; Boston paid more than $110 million in luxury taxes the past two seasons, and with a climbing payroll, it is expected to pay nearly $50 million for the 2024-25 season. Once Tatum, an All-NBA forward, reaches a deal on a new extension, the Celtics will have $600 million in salary tied to him and Brown.

The last team to repeat as NBA champions were the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018.

Oklahoma is finally, officially, in the SEC.

Monday afternoon, in the middle of a day-long celebration of the Sooners switching conferences, Oklahoma president Joseph Harroz Jr., athletic director Joe Castiglione and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey held a press conference at Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium to herald the move.

Here are some takeaways from the press conference:

Oklahoma’s SEC move has been nearly a decade in the making

Castiglione and Sankey said the move had been in the works for around a decade — well before the official word of the move bubbled out in July 2021.

‘The move for us was thoughtful and strategic,’ Harroz said.

Sankey said the genesis for the move came in October 2015 when he presented an analysis to the SEC’s presidents and chancellors of the future of college athletics.

The big turn came in the spring of 2021, when Oklahoma and Texas made a unified pitch to the SEC about joining the conference.

Castiglione said it was important to be forward-thinking across the board, especially with the rapid changes taking place in college athletics.

‘Understanding some way, shape or form those things that we saw eight, 10 years ago are happening,’ Castiglione said.

Greg Sankey has Oklahoma ties

Sankey grew up in upstate New York.

But Sankey made his first trip to Oklahoma in 1969 when he was 5, visiting his grandfather in the state.

‘My grandfather was born and raised in Chouteau, Oklahoma,’ Sankey said. ‘This state has always been a part of our family’s life. He was a Yankees fan not because of New York but because of (Oklahoma native) Mickey Mantle.’

Joseph Harroz: Move to SEC was about two goals

Harroz said the driving factors of the move came down to two primary goals.

‘Two conclusions that we reached that governed all of it — The University of Oklahoma must be in a place to win championships in all the sports,’ he said. ‘Second is we wanted to remain among the handful of athletic departments in the country that weren’t subsidized.’

Harroz said that without the move, Oklahoma’s athletic department would’ve needed subsidies beginning as quickly as 2027 or 2028.

Greg Sankey declines to discuss ‘Horns Down’

It became an annual summer point of discussion in the Big 12 — how would the ‘Horns Down’ hand signal be handled by football officials.

Sankey was asked about it Monday but declined to say how Oklahoma’s unofficial hand signal would be handled, particularly in the Red River Rivalry on Oct. 12 in Dallas.

‘I’m not going to talk about football penalties on July 1,’ Sankey said with a smile. ‘I’ll let my football coordinator deal with that.’

NBC is counting on a renewed interest in the Summer Olympics — with no global pandemic to push it back a year this time — to drive ratings for Paris 2024. 

If the Team USA trials are an indication, the ratings might not return to pre-pandemic levels — but do signal a heightened interest compared to the Tokyo Games of 2021 postponed by COVID-19. 

Biles and the women’s gymnastics team drew 7.6 million average viewers during Sunday night’s Olympic all-around qualifying meet, which Biles won to secure her third Olympic bid. 

The audience peaked at 8.2 million viewers between 10 p.m. ET and 10:15 p.m. ET as the athletes completed their final rotation. Biles, reigning all-around gold medalist Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey and Healy Rivera were selected to represent Team USA. 

The COVID-delayed trials of 2021 led 5.9 million viewers to NBC and its other broadcast and streaming properties. This year’s number was a 24% increase from three years ago, but is down from 2016, the last regularly scheduled trials. That final averaged 8.6 million viewers.