A senior vice president of the Atlanta Hawks has been indicted and charged with embezzling $3.8 million from the NBA franchise as part of what authorities in Georgia are saying was a yearslong scheme, according to a report in The Athletic.

Lester Jones, 46, had been part of the Hawks finance department for nearly a decade before a team-backed audit uncovered evidence of his alleged crimes, the report said.

The Hawks and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia declined to comment.

Jones, who is no longer employed by the Hawks, pleaded not guilty last week and was released on $10,000 bond, The Athletic reported.

Among the allegations in the indictment, Jones had the team pay off his American Express credit card balance of nearly $230,000 last January, claiming it was for a stay at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. However, prosecutors said there was no bill from the hotel.

Also, Jones allegedly used some of the money he was stealing from the team to buy expensive gifts for another now-former Hawks employee whom he was dating.

It was all part of a scheme, prosecutors allege, in which Jones used his position as senior vice president of financial planning and analysis to authorize charges on multiple corporate credit cards for himself and others. Prosecutors say he used his power to pay for a luxury car, concert tickets and trips to the Bahamas, Hawaii, Thailand, Switzerland and other countries.

Jones is also charged with federal wire fraud for allegedly faking emails and altering reports to cover his activities.

The 2025-26 women’s college basketball season is upon us.

Less than seven months ago, Paige Bueckers led UConn to its first national championship since 2016 and earned the Wade Trophy and first-team All-American honors. Bueckers may have moved on to the WNBA, winning Rookie of the Year after being drafted first overall by the Dallas Wings, but the Huskies return senior Azzi Fudd and sophomore Sarah Strong and have high hopes for back-to-back titles.

Fudd and Strong are among 10 college basketball stars that deserve your attention as the women’s college basketball season gets underway. No. 1-ranked UConn opens the season against No. 19 Louisville on Tuesday (5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

It’s worth noting that USC guard Juju Watkins and South Carolina forward Chloe Kitts have been ruled out for the season due to injuries and are not on the list. Watkins said she’ll ‘sit out this season and fully focus on continuing to recover’ after suffering a torn right ACL in the second round of the NCAA tournament on March 24. Meanwhile, Kitts announced on Oct. 13 that she tore her right ACL at practice and will have surgery.

Azzi Fudd, UConn, Sr., G

2025 average: 13.6 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.2 steals, 47.4 FG%, 43.6 3PT% (34 games)

A string of injuries has hindered Fudd’s career. She played a total of 17 games her sophomore and junior seasons because of knee injuries. Fudd hopes to pick up where she left off last season, helping the Huskies to their record 12th national title. Fudd was named the Most Outstanding Player in the championship game vs. South Carolina after recording 24 points and five rebounds, shooting 9-of-17 from the field. Fudd surpassed the 1,000-point threshold in the title game, her 76th career game. Fudd opted out of the 2025 WNBA draft to return to UConn for another season to develop her skills and unlock her full potential. Like her podcast name, teams will ‘Fudd Around and Find Out’ this season.

Lauren Betts, UCLA, Sr., C

2025 average: 20.2 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.9 blocks, 64.8 FG% (34 games)

Flau’jae Johnson, LSU, Jr., G

2025 average: 18.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.7 steals, 46.8 FG%, 38.3% 3PT (34 games)

Flau’jae Johnson has reached the Elite Eight in each of her three seasons under Kim Mulkey and won a national championship in 2023. Following the departure of Angel Reese in 2024, Johnson upped her average from 14.9 points per game to a career-high 18.6 points last season. She reached double-digits in three of LSU’s four NCAA Tournament games last season, including a career-high 28-point performance (24 came in the second half) against UCLA in their Elite Eight loss. Johnson will pair up with Mikaylah Williams and MiLaysia Fulwiley, who transferred from South Carolina, with hopes of contending for another championship.

Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame, Jr., G

2025 average: 23.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 3.7 steals, 46.3 FG%, 40% 3PT (32 games)

It’s hard to believe Hannah Hidalgo is only a junior after all she’s accomplished in her first two seasons at Notre Dame. Hidalgo is the fourth player in NCAA college women’s basketball history to be named an AP first-team All-American in her freshman and sophomore seasons, joining JuJu Watkins, Maya Moore and Courtney Paris. Hidalgo recorded back-to-back seasons with 700 or more points (only Arike Ogunbowale has done so at Notre Dame) and 100 or more steals. She also became the fastest player in program history to reach 1,000 career points and was named the ACC Player of the Year and ACC Defensive Player of the Year.

Audi Crooks, Iowa State, Jr., C

2025 average: 23.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.7 blocks, 60.5 FG% (35 games)

Audi Crooks announced herself to the world by dropping a career-high 40 points in the 2024 NCAA tournament vs. Maryland, shooting a staggering 18-of-20 from the field. Crooks continued that momentum into her sophomore season, where she not only led the Big 12 in scoring, but efficiency and field goal percentage. Crooks reached double digits in every game last season and led the nation in made field goals (329). She broke Iowa State’s single-season records for points (820) and field goals. Crooks earned AP and USBWA third-team All-American honors and she was named the Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year.

Sarah Strong, UConn, So., F

2025 average: 16.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.3 steals, 58.6 FG%, 33.8 3PT% (40 games)

Sarah Strong’s freshman campaign was true to her last name as she was named an AP second-team All-American and WBCA Freshman of the Year after setting multiple records. Strong dominated with a 24-point, 15-rebound double-double in UConn’s title win over South Carolina, marking her fourth double-double of March Madness. She holds the record for most points in an NCAA Tournament by a freshman (114). ‘There are players that play four years and don’t get as much done as she did this year,’ coach Geno Auriemma said after the title game.

Olivia Miles, TCU, Sr., G

2025 average: 15.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.4 steals, 48.3 FG%, 40.6% 3PT (34 games)

Olivia Miles was projected to be the No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, but surprised some by entering the transfer portal. TCU snagged Miles, arguably the best playmaker and passer in the country, following the program’s first Elite Eight appearance. Miles is coming off an impressive season at Notre Dame after sitting out all of 2023-24 with a knee injury. She posted a 20-point triple-double in her return and teamed up with Hannah Hidalgo to form the best backcourt duo in the country. Miles raised her 3-point average from 22.8% in 2022-23 to a career-high 40.6% last season and was the only player in the nation to average 15-5-5 while shooting 40% or higher beyond the arc. There are high hopes for her at TCU — she was voted Big 12’s Preseason Newcomer of the Year.

Madison Booker, Texas, Jr., F

2025 average: 16.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.6 steals, 46.1 FG%, 40.3% 3PT (39 games)

SEC Player of the Year Madison Booker is a certified bucket and scored double-digit points in 32 of 38 games last season. She scored 20 or more points in 14 of those games. Booker led Texas to a program-high 35 wins and its first Final Four appearance since 2003. Booker earned first-team All-American honors as a result and, for the second consecutive year, won the Cheryl Miller Award, which is awarded to the best small forward in the country. Booker will team up with Rori Harmon in hopes of running it back.

Ta’Niya Latson, South Carolina, Sr., G

2025 average: 25.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 2.2 steals, 45.1% FG, 34.3% 3PT (29 games)

Latson is coming off a breakout junior campaign at Florida State, where she set career highs in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Latson led the nation in scoring and powered the Seminoles to the highest scoring offense in the country (86.9 ppg). She became the third player in ACC history to hit 2,000 points in their first three seasons. After Florida State had another early exit in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, Latson entered the transfer portal and landed with SEC powerhouse South Carolina. The Gamecocks will benefit from Latson’s offensive production after losing starting guards Bree Hall and Te-Hina Paopao to graduation and MiLaysia Fulwiley (LSU) to the transfer portal.

Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt, So., G

2025 average: 23.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 2.4 steals, 45.6 FG%, 34.2% 3PT (32 games)

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The beginning of November is also the start of crunch time for teams hoping to make the College Football Playoff. Week 10 saw some teams step forward and others put their playoff hopes in peril or be outright eliminated.

Moving into the forecasted field this week are three teams. Texas Tech is the new pick to win the Big 12 with Brigham Young moving into the at-large pool. Louisville takes over as the ACC champion, and South Florida replaces Tulane as the American favorite and Group of Five representative in the field.

Other teams improving their stock but not yet among the final 12 are Oklahoma and Texas after respective wins against Tennessee and Vanderbilt. The losses were damaging to the hopes of the Volunteers and Commodores, who each will need a lot to fall right to get a selection.

It was also a bad week for two ACC teams falling out of the field. Miami answered the question whether its loss last month to Louisville was a blip or evidence of a deeper issue. The Hurricanes are in serious trouble after falling to SMU. The path through the ACC seems closed and at-large hopes need some chaos ahead. Georgia Tech now must likely win the league to get in after an unsettling loss to North Carolina State.

Notes: Legacy Pac-12 schools in other conferences will fulfill existing Pac-12 bowl agreements through the 2025 season. Not all conferences will fulfill their bowl allotment. An asterisk represents a replacement pick.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has made conflicting statements about a potential trade ahead of the NFL deadline.
Jones initially claimed a trade had been agreed upon, but later said no deal was finalized.
The Cowboys owner also stated the team would not be shifting into ‘selling mode’ after their recent defeat.

(UPDATE: On Tuesday, the Dallas Cowboys agreed to acquire linebacker Logan Wilson from the Cincinnati Bengals, according to multiple reports.)

Jerry Jones is ready to deal at the NFL trade deadline. Unless he isn’t.

With Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET cutoff for swaps closing in, the Dallas Cowboys owner kept up his habit of engaging in double-talk regarding his team’s personnel plans. This time, Jones undermined his claim earlier in the day that he had reached agreement on a deal with another organization.

‘We could conceivably see something that we ought to do, in spite of tonight,’ Jones told reporters after a 27-17 loss to the Arizona Cowboys dropped the Cowboys to 3-5-1 on the season. ‘And the answer to your question: There is no trade right now. … But there is one I can do. Without question, there is one I can do, and I’m leaning toward doing it.’

Jones pushed back against the suggestion that the outcome of Monday night’s game in any way changed his outlook.

‘Everybody knows it’s subject to tomorrow,’ Jones said. ‘You can’t have a trade done if you haven’t gotten it done, OK? So we’ll see what goes tomorrow … I said we were going to have a trade that’ll be consummated tomorrow. That’s what I said.”

For any uncertainty Jones was willing to recognize, however, he made it clear that he doesn’t intend for his team to shift into selling mode after the defeat.

“I like our nuts and bolts a lot,’ Jones said.

Jones created a stir earlier in the day with his proclamation that a deal had been reached.

‘A lot of action going on right now in terms of trading,’ Jones said on ‘The Stephen A. Smith Show’ on SiriusXM Radio. ‘We certainly have made a trade, and we may make a couple more trades before that deadline. We’ve made one. We possibly could make two more, and I’m going to wait and let you read about that when we send the papers in tomorrow.’

The first College Football Playoff rankings for the 2025 season will be revealed Tuesday, Nov. 4, starting at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

A lot can change between now and Dec. 7 when the final CFP bracket is revealed, but Tuesday will provide the best barometer yet of where the selection committee sees this year’s contenders.

Of last year’s 12 teams in the first rankings, 10 made the final cut. Only Miami and BYU were left out in the final rankings. Here’s a look at how the rankings shifted:

2024 first CFP rankings vs final rankings

Notes:

Arizona State wasn’t ranked in the Top 25 in the initial CFP rankings last season. But the Sun Devils won six in a row to finish the season, including three ranked wins with a 45-19 Big 12 title game win over Iowa State.
Miami dropped from No. 4 to No. 13. The Hurricanes started 9-0 but lost two of their final three to put pressure on the committee.
BYU began the season 9-0 but was doomed by back-to-back losses to Kansas and Arizona State.
SMU was 8-1 and ranked 13th in the CFP reveal and won three more games before losing 34-31 to Clemson in the ACC Championship game. Miami and SMU didn’t play each other in the regular season, and the committee decided not to penalize the Mustangs for losing a close title game.

When will first 2025 CFP rankings be released?

The first College Football Playoff rankings will be announced between 8-8:45 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Nov. 4 on ESPN, which will drop all the CFP rankings.

Keep up with the latest news and analysis from college football’s top two conferences: Check out our Big Ten Hub and our SEC Hub to get school-by-school coverage from across the USA TODAY Network.

Jake Paul tore into Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis after their exhibition fight was canceled on Monday, Nov. 3 with Davis facing allegations of attacking a woman last week.

“Gervonta Davis is an actual walking human piece of garbage,’’ Paul wrote on his X account. “Working with him is an absolute nightmare. The unprofessionalism, the bizarre requests, the showing up hours late to shoots. To the numerous arrests and related accusations and lawsuits. If you support this man you support the most vile sin a man can commit.’’

Paul’s tirade against Davis, the 30-year-old WBA world lightweight champion, continued.

“I didn’t want to give this woman abuser a platform to grow his fans and to grow his bank account,’’ he wrote. “My company champions women. I’m so sorry to everyone involved. Mostly to the undercard fighters, to my team at MVP and to my team who worked so hard prepping for this fight. Sacrificing time with loved ones and kids just for this fool to lose his unintelligent mind again. It’s scary that devilish men like this can rise to the top of culture and sports, including in positions of power.’’

And finally, Paul wrote, “I hope you people moving forward look beyond his fake streetwear pieces ‘SWAG’ and search for something deeper to be a fan of. As for me it’s on to the next one as always. Anyone. Anytime. Any place.’’

It appears Paul was well aware of previous allegations that Davis, the 30-year-old WBA world lightweight champion, had committed domestic violence.

On July 11, Davis was arrested on a battery charge after an incident involving a woman who is the mother of his two children. But the charges were dropped when the woman and another witness failed to cooperate, according to the State Attorney’s office in Miami.

In December 2022, he was arrested in Broward County, Florida, on one count for allegedly striking a woman on the side of her head, according to court records and an ESPN report. The charges were dropped, according to court records.

In February 2020, Davis was charged with two misdemeanor counts of battery stemming from an incident with the mother of his daughter at a charity basketball game, according to court records and an ESPN report. The charges were dropped, according to court records.

And during a Sept. 22 press conference to promote their fight, Paul told Davis, “Gervonta, you’re the (expletive) clown, buddy. Any man who puts his hands on a woman is a clown.’

Less than 24 hours after his quarterback suffered a dislocated elbow in the fourth quarter of a blowout loss, Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn squarely put the blame on his own shoulders for having Jayden Daniels in the game.

Quinn opened his Nov. 3 news conference with a hefty dose of accountability.

‘I know many of you have been asking about the thought process of Jayden being in the game, in that situation and I get that,’ Quinn said. ‘I’ve been thinking about it, honestly, nonstop too. And for me the answer is, man, I missed it.’

Quinn explained his thought process. As the Commanders took possession trailing 38-7 with 12:30 left in the game, the plan was for the drive to be the last time Daniels and other players such as tight end Zach Ertz, wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. and left tackle Laremy Tunsil on the field in what was an eventual 38-14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

‘We weren’t going to have any read-run plays, meaning no carries for the quarterback on a run,’ Quinn said. ‘And honestly, man, that’s where I missed it. Of course (Daniels) can scramble. He’s Jayden. It’s what he’s special at, and that is 100 percent – that’s on me.’

Quinn confirmed that Daniels dislocated his left elbow and said there was no timetable associated with the injury as the team is still gathering information.

Daniels had missed the Commanders’ previous game against the Kansas City Chiefs with a hamstring injury. He also sat out Weeks 3 and 4 with a knee ailment.

Cornerback Marshon Lattimore will miss the rest of the season with an ACL injury, Quinn said, and wide receiver Luke McCaffrey suffered a broken collarbone that will keep him out for an extended and indefinite period of time.

When the Florida Gators won their first men’s basketball national championship in 2006, they immediately followed it up with a second straight title. 

In that 2007 repeat season, Florida rolled its way through the season, convincingly defending its crown and achieving something that hadn’t been done since Duke in 1992-93. Entering this season, the Gators felt like they could replicate their past with another championship.

Instead, it took just one game into the Gators’ 2025 title defense for them to learn it’s going to be a whole lot tougher to pull off another string of back-to-back national championships.

No. 3 Florida couldn’t stop No. 13 Arizona in Las Vegas with the Wildcats pulling off a convincing 93-87 win on opening night of the 2025-26 season.

While it was Florida that was the headline of the matchup, the show was stolen by Arizona’s five-star freshman Koa Peat. He had an electric debut for the Wildcats as he dazzled on both sides of the court, putting up a game-high 30 points with seven rebounds and five assists for the Wildcats. 

The Gators simply had no answer for him and the rest of Arizona’s high-powered offense, with cold streaks coming as Arizona’s offense got rolling after a slow start. Florida led by 12 points midway through the first half, only for the Wildcats to wake up and take the lead by halftime, which it held onto for the remainder of the game.

With the loss, the Gators are the first defending champion to drop their season opener since Syracuse in 2003.

Why it will be tough for Florida to repeat 

It’s only the first game of a four month marathon to the NCAA Tournament, but the result on Monday, Nov. 3 proved how difficult it is in today’s age to achieve back-to-back national championships – even though it was just done two seasons ago.

When Connecticut defended the title 2024, coach Dan Hurley lost his top two scorers, but had a core of key players return from all sides of the court that carried the torch. 

Florida coach Todd Golden has a somewhat similar case, with a big-man lineup of Alex Condon, Rueben Chinyelu and Thomas Haugh all back. Yet, it was the back court that carried the load, with Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard accounting for 46 points per game.

All of those guys are gone, and their absence was evident against the Wildcats.

Golden replaced his key guards with Boogie Fland from Arkansas and Xaivian Lee from Princeton, but as is expected with even notable transfers, it’s going to take some time for them to mesh with the rest of the team.

Haugh led Florida with 27 points, but Lee and Fland had rather timid debut performances. Lee had 14 points on 5-for-17 shooting, and Fland struggled to find the bucket, making just one shot in the second half to finish with nine points.

It’s a far cry from those back-to-back Florida years, when it had stars Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer still there to run it back. That came at a time where it was common for teams to retain key talent.

Now, the transfer portal and NBA draft make it so challenging for teams to replicate the success achieved just a few months prior. It’s also incredibly tough when Florida has a schedule that includes Arizona, Duke and Connecticut in addition to the gauntlet it will experience in the SEC.

Is Florida’s season over? Far from it. It could very well recover and be a No. 1 seed again in March.

However, the punch the Gators took from the Wildcats is a reminder that it is getting much harder to win it all in two straight years; and the road is only going to get tougher for the defending champs. 

The electricity was palpable in Las Vegas. The Brigham Young contingent traveled West to usher in what many believe is now the golden era of Cougar men’s basketball.

It began with a rousing showing − with the man they believe to lead that era showing why so much is possible for BYU.

Freshman sensation AJ Dybantsa dazzled in his college debut, leading No. 8 BYU to a 71-66 win over Villanova with a dominant second half performance. 

‘It just feels good to get under my belt and get a win,’ Dybantsa said.

Last season felt like the start of something building for BYU, reaching the Sweet 16 for the first time since the Jimmer Fredette days in 2011. Coincidentally, “Jimmer Mania” might be the best way to compare the hype surrounding Dybantsa.

Considered the top recruit in the 2025 freshman class, Dybantsa attended Utah Prep Academy and opted to stay in-state, spurring Alabama, Kansas and North Carolina to play for BYU coach Kevin Young.

The Cougars got a taste of Dybantsa’s potential in a couple of exhibitions, including a 30-point outing against Nebraska. It brought excitement, but everyone eagerly waited to see what he could do in a game that counts.

When the lights were bright and the pressure was up, Dybantsa proved he could take over. He finished with a team-high 21 points, 13 of which came in a second half resurgence that staved the Wildcats off from a potential upset. He added five rebounds and three assists while not committing a turnover or a foul.

The flashes were there immediately. Dybantsa was driving toward the bucket and able to get himself enough space for a good look and get the shot in. His quick flurry in the opening minutes helped BYU get out to an early lead and gain a sense this game would be over early.

But the new Villanova under Kevin Willard showed it wasn’t going to fold easily. A 12-3 run in the second half suddenly made it a one-point game, and with just under seven minutes left, the Wildcats were up by two points. 

That’s when the Dybantsa show only picked up. He made it a mission to drive into the paint, weaving his way through the defenders and scoring as Villanova’s interior was unable to stop it. He scored six points during a 10-0 BYU run, a critical stretch that not only gave the Cougars the lead back but made it too big of a deficit for Villanova late in the second half.

By then, all BYU needed to do was to avoid the mistakes to let Villanova back in. 

It was an impressive showing for the freshman, even with teammates Richie Saunders and Baylor transfer Robert Wright III each having their own productive nights. There wasn’t a need to ease Dybantsa into the game, with him just sitting two minutes of the second half and playing the final nine minutes of the game.

Young said he had told Dybantsa at halftime he felt like he was a little too jumpy in the first 20 minutes, but saw him flip a switch that allowed him to be ‘a little bit more calculated with his drives.’

‘Down the stretch, we put the ball in his hands,’ Young said. ‘He made plays, so in his first game to be able to have the poise to do that, I thought was impressive.’

If there was one thing to work on, it was the free throw shooting, where he went just 2-for-7 from the charity stripe.

It’s only the first game, but it was a promising sign for Dybantsa and a BYU team that believes it can make its first Final Four in program history. If Dybantsa is able to command games like he did in the season opener, gold may be awaiting the Cougars in March.