ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – Two years after winning a prestigious amateur title at St. Andrews, Matthew Jordan enjoyed more success on the famous Old Course by shooting 8-under 64 to lead the Dunhill Links Championship on Friday.

The 23-year-old led by one stroke after two rounds, with his bogey-free score at St. Andrews coming a day after shooting 6-under 66 at Kingsbarns.

Every player in the field plays 18 holes at three Scottish courses - St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns - before returning to the Old Course for the fourth and final round of the pro-am on Sunday.

That is where Jordan won the St. Andrews Links Trophy in 2017 during an impressive amateur career that ended when he turned pro in September last year. Ranked No. 292, Jordan now plays on the second-tier Challenge Tour, where he won the Italian Challenge Open in June.

None of his three closest pursuers are ranked in the top 100 in the world, either.

Matthew Southgate, ranked No. 300, shot 66 at Kingsbarns to join No. 126 Calum Hill (65 at St. Andrews) and No. 265 Joakim Lagergren (62 at Kingsbarns) in a tie for second place on 13 under overall.

Justin Rose was 8 under after nine holes at Kingsbarns, and had nine birdies and an eagle in total in his round of 64, leaving the world No. 4 in a six-way share on fifth place on 12 under.

First-round leader Justin Walters shot 1-under 71 at Carnoustie, traditionally the toughest of the three courses, and dropped into a tie for 17th on 10 under.

Rory McIlroy was 5 under after five holes, but only picked up one more birdie in shooting a bogey-free 66 at Kingsbarns. The No. 2-ranked McIlroy was at 8 under, six strokes off the lead.

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has said winger Christian Pulisic "needs time to adapt" to the Premier League club.

Pulisic signed for Chelsea from Borussia Dortmund in January, but was immediately loaned back to the Bundesliga side before joining the Blues this summer.

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Speaking ahead of Chelsea's league clash with Brighton this weekend, Lampard said of the United States international: "Pulisic we forget is 21, because of the price tag.

"It is normal to have an adaptation period. He has shown some good moments this season and in preseason, but he must do it daily."

Pulisic joined Chelsea for a fee of £54 million, and has not yet scored in six appearances for the club in all competitions.

"He needs time to adapt, but we support him on that," Lampard said. "His time will come.

"A huge part of any manager's job is to sit and work with the players -- younger or older, but with younger players you want to pass on more knowledge and help them.

"Sometimes it is being tough. I try to do that as much as possible."

Lampard also provided updates on the fitness of a number of his players, saying that defender Antonio Rudiger will miss the Brighton fixture due to a groin issue, while Emerson's hamstring injury will keep him sidelined until after the international break next month.

Likewise, Ruben Loftus-Cheek is not likely to return in the immediate future.

"We can't give a date," Lampard said, "but he's outside jogging slowly.

"That's a positive move for this week. It's good to see him outside. We will see how that goes over the next weeks."

Lampard added that Andreas Christensen is expected to feature in the Chelsea squad to face Brighton, while Olivier Giroud's involvement is uncertain.

Former Chelsea player Lampard took over as manager this summer and his side have experienced mixed fortunes in the Premier League, winning two, drawing two and losing two.

They have also suffered two defeats in Europe -- one to Liverpool in the UEFA Super Cup and one at home to Valencia in the Champions League -- but defeated League Two side Grimsby 7-1 in the Carabao Cup this week.

With two weekends remaining in Major League Soccer's regular season, the race for the postseason -- four playoff spots remain up for grabs -- is coming down to the wire.

All 12 games will be played on Sunday, with six Eastern Conference games kicking off at 5 p.m. ET and six from the Western Conference beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET.

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THE WEEKEND'S BIG QUESTIONS

Does San Jose have anything left?

Four losses in a row and just two wins since August have Matias Almeyda's team fighting for their playoff lives (and it doesn't help that the coach's fiery personality got him suspended for Wednesday's 2-1 loss against Philadelphia).

To reach the postseason for just the second time since 2012, San Jose needs victories, starting with Seattle's visit to Avaya Stadium on Sunday (ESPN+, 7.30 p.m. ET). This is about as big as it gets in the league this weekend, with the Sounders fighting for second in the west.

It is a test of Almeyda's managerial talents and the bigger project in San Jose, but at least the Quakes will also get a boost with Chris Wondolowski's return, though they'll miss his support as a fan.

Can Atlanta win without Martinez?

The defending champion suffered a massive and poorly timed setback when Josef Martinez went down with a knee injury in last week's win over San Jose. The Venezuelan striker's 15-game scoring streak set MLS records and lifted the Five Stripes into a challenge for first place in the Eastern Conference.

While his prognosis seems to change for the better by the day, it's unlikely he'll be able to feature before the regular season is out, and the first test for Frank de Boer's squad without him saw Atlanta thrashed 4-1 by New York City FC in a battle for first place in the east on Wednesday. The loss effectively spelled the end of Atlanta's first-place chances and, combined with Philadelphia's win at San Jose, did significant damage to the possibility of securing second.

On Sunday, Atlanta visits Montreal (ESPN+, 5 p.m. ET). The Impact is technically still in the playoff hunt, but the expectation will be for United to handle its business. More than that, though, getting a victory without Martinez is important for Atlanta's confidence heading into the final weekend and the looming defence of their title.

Can LAFC make more history at bogey team Minnesota?

LAFC's march to the Supporters' Shield is complete. Bob Bradley's team pulled out of a five-game winless run on Wednesday night with a 4-1 win over Houston, prompting wild celebrations at Banc of California Stadium. LAFC's home-field advantage throughout the playoffs is also ensured.

LAFC needs four points from its final two games to set a single-season points record of 71 and visits Allianz Field to take on Minnesota United on Sunday (ESPN+, 7.30 p.m. ET). Bradley's men might be slight favourites, but don't forget that the Loons beat the Shield winners back on Sept. 1.

ONE THING THAT WILL DEFINITELY HAPPEN

Zlatan Ibrahimovic will score. It's generally a bad idea to bet against him, but that's especially true when the stakes are high. Ibrahimovic is a good bet to find the net on Sunday (ESPN+, 7.30 p.m. ET) against a Vancouver side with nothing left play for while the Galaxy strive to lock up a home playoff game.

Ibrahimovic scored one and made another in the Galaxy's win at Vancouver in April and, with 28 goals, sits two goals behind Carlos Vela for the Golden Boot with two games to play. It's on.

THE GAME YOU'RE NOT PLANNING TO WATCH ... BUT SHOULD

Colorado vs. FC Dallas (ESPN+, 7.30 p.m. ET) might not look like the most glamorous matchup, but there is intrigue under the surface for a game between two teams connected by a coach who bolted Colorado for Dallas in 2014.

Oscar Pareja is in Tijuana these days, but this one still figures to have some spice. FC Dallas are squarely in the hunt for a playoff spot with a young, exciting group, while the Rapids are still mathematically in it and could spring a miracle.

PLAYER TO WATCH

We will go with the obvious choice and pick Vela, who is closing out an otherworldly season. His 30 goals puts him one behind Martinez's single-season record of 31 (set just last year), while his 15 assists puts him third in the league. Only one player in history, Sebastian Giovinco, had accomplished at least 20 goals and 15 assists in a season.

Vela blew past those numbers, becoming the first player to hit the 25/15 and 30/15 thresholds. He could break the single-season goal-scoring record on Sunday at Minnesota (ESPN+, 7.30 p.m. ET).

A TEAM THAT NEEDS SOME LUCK

Portland Timbers cannot catch a break. First the scoring dries up, then Brian Fernandez picks up a stomach issue and then, just when the goals do come back thanks to Jeremy Ebobisse, a 2-0 lead is thrown away at home to New England.

Portland will be on the road for the first time since Aug. 4 when they visit Kansas City on Sunday (ESPN+, 7.30 p.m. ET). With the margins fine enough to cut Timber Joey's log, Giovanni Savarese and his team are hoping for some better fortune as they look to secure postseason soccer.

Karachi's first ODI in over 10 years didn't even get as far as the toss. Heavy rain in the days leading up to this match was already proving a challenge, with doubts arising over whether the outfield would dry in time. Then, on Friday, more rain was delivered by towering dark clouds, forming large puddles on the outfield, and making even umpire inspections a challenge, once the rain did eventually relent. The severity of the downpour has prompted changes in the tour as well with the second game being postponed by a day to September 30. The final ODI will take place as originally scheduled on October 2.

The National Stadium was heavily waterlogged with the covers never moving through the course of a gloomy Friday afternoon, and just before 4:30 pm local time the officials had little choice but to abandon this game. Karachi will need bright sunshine over the weekend in order to assist the drying of the outfield, but unfortunately, more rain is forecast for Sunday.

Sri Lanka's tour to Pakistan consists of three ODIs and three T20Is.

Sushma Verma, the wicketkeeper-batsman, was the only new entrant into the India women's squad for their upcoming tour of the West Indies for three ODIs and five T20Is.

The BCCI announced a 16-member ODI squad for the tour that kicks off in November, with Sushma the only addition to the squad of 15 that is set to play South Africa in Vadodara in three ODIs next week. The T20I squad was the same as the 15 that were chosen for the first three games of the ongoing T20I series against South Africa, where the hosts lead 1-0 with the second game washed out.

That means 15-year-old Shafali Verma, the hard-hitting top-order batsman, retains her place in the T20I squad. She was out for ducks in the warm-up game against South Africa and on T20I debut. Harleen Deol, who impressed in the T20 Challenger earlier this year, keeps her place as does 19-year-old allrounder Pooja Vastrakar.

Led by Harmanpreet Kaur and with Smriti Mandhana as the vice-captain, this tour is a further opportunity for India to tune their preparations ahead of the Women's T20 World Cup in Australia in March 2019.

The first two T20Is will be played in St Lucia, before the teams move to Guyana for the next three matches.

For Sushma, who last represented India in April 2018, it is a return to the side having missed a spot for the home series against England and South Africa this year. She offers a second wicketkeeping option to the ODI captain Mithali Raj, behind the incumbent wicketkeeper Taniya Bhatia. The ODIs will be played in Antigua from November 1.

India women's ODI squad: Mithali Raj (Captain), Harmanpreet Kaur (vice-captain), Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Punam Raut, D Hemalatha, Jhulan Goswami, Shikha Pandey, Mansi Joshi, Poonam Yadav, Ekta Bisht, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Taniya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), Priya Punia, Sushma Verma

India women's T20I squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Taniya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), Poonam Yadav, Radha Yadav, Veda Krishnamurthy, Anuja Patil, Shikha Pandey, Pooja Vastrakar, Mansi Joshi, Arundhati Reddy

The second ODI between Pakistan and Sri Lanka has been postponed by a day owing to unseasonal rains that left Karachi's National Stadium waterlogged, washing out the first game of the series in the process. With more rain expected on the day of the second game - Sunday, September 29 - the Pakistan Cricket Board, in consultation with the Sri Lanka Cricket Board, has rescheduled the game to Monday, September 30.

"This week's heavy rains, including on Friday afternoon, has left the outfield soggy, with the groundstaff requiring at least two complete days to make the ground fit for cricket," a PCB media statement said. "The PCB has also announced tickets sold for Friday, 27 September, will be valid for either 30 September or 2 October ODI, while tickets sold for Sunday, 29 September, match may also be used for either 30 September or 2 October ODI. As per the PCB ticketing policy for the series, the PCB will also allow refund of all tickets for Friday's match."

PCB director of international cricket Zakir Khan said, "This week's unseasonal heavy rains have forced us to review the series schedule. I am thankful to Sri Lanka Cricket as well as our host broadcasters for agreeing to amend the match schedule to ensure there are no further abandonments due to rain in what is an important bilateral FTP series for Pakistan."

Unexpected rain in Karachi had put this game in doubt as early as 48 hours before the scheduled start, with the city lashed by heavy afternoon rains each of the past three days. With a training session cancelled on Wednesday and only a short one possible on Thursday, the square had been under covers all this while. This afternoon, when perhaps the heaviest spell of rain all week descended upon the National Stadium, cancellation was inevitable.

It is by no means a familiar phenomenon for the city, this match being the first ODI ever to be abandoned because of the weather in Karachi.

Mohammad Azharuddin has been elected president of the Hyderabad Cricket Association. The former India captain took 147 of the 223 votes cast, with his nearest opponent Prakash Jain polling 73 votes and a third contestant, Dilip Kumar, just three.

The development adds another chapter to the life of Azharuddin, who has never been far from the news since scoring hundreds in his first three Test matches back in 1984-85. Azharuddin played 99 Tests and 334 ODIs before his career was brought to an abrupt end in 2000 with the BCCI banning him for life after the Central Bureau of Investigation found him guilty of match-fixing.

In its report, the CBI said: "The evidence against Azharuddin … clearly establishes the fact that he took money from bookies/punters to fix cricket matches and also the fact that the 'underworld' had approached him to fix matches for them."

Azharuddin, in his statement to the CBI, had admitted to receiving money from the bookie Mukesh Gupta to fix some matches, but has stated that he "did" only two matches for him - an admission the CBI called "a dilution of the actual facts".

Yet Azharuddin, who led India in 47 Tests and 174 ODIs, never stopped pleading his innocence until the Andhra Pradesh High Court finally struck down the life ban in 2012, declaring it illegal.

Along the way, Azharuddin has enjoyed a gradual reintegration with Indian cricket and public life, but the ride hasn't always been smooth.

In 2009, he joined the Congress party, and served as a Member of Parliament from 2009 to 2014. In 2011, he had to endure the untimely death of one of his two sons, Ayazuddin, who succumbed to injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident in his hometown Hyderabad.

This is the second time Azharuddin has put his hat in the HCA ring. In January 2017, Azharuddin made his first bid to contest the elections, but his nomination for the president's post was rejected due to uncertainty over whether or not the BCCI had lifted his life ban.

Last year, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), helmed by Sourav Ganguly - who took over India's captaincy soon after the 2000 fixing scandal - invited Azharuddin to ring the ceremonial bell at Eden Gardens at the start of a T20I between India and West Indies. The CAB's decision drew flak from numerous voices including former India batsmen Gautam Gambhir - who called it "shocking" - and Sanjay Manjrekar - who responded by tweeting a link to the CBI report from its match-fixing investigation.

Azharuddin didn't give up his desire to enter cricket administration, however, and re-entered the fray for the top post at the HCA. The elections took place at the HCA headquarters in Hyderabad on Friday, supervised by electoral officer VS Sampath, a former election commissioner of India.

The elections marked the first time that former international cricketers participated in the voting process. This was one of the key recommendations of the RM Lodha Committee that led to the structural overhaul of cricket administration at the BCCI and its state associations. Eleven international players from Hyderabad cast their votes, including Azharuddin, VVS Laxman and Venkatapathy Raju.

R Vijayanand will be the new HCA secretary. He won 137 votes, more than twice as many as the favourite S Venkateshwaran, who polled 62 votes.

Zimbabwe 133 for 5 (Burl 41*, Mutumbami 40*, Lamichhane3-15)beat Nepal 132 for 6 (Airee 40, Williams 2-19)by five wickets

Zimbabwe have had very little to cheer about in the past few months. They became the first Full Member to be suspended by the ICC and are now set to miss next year's T20 World Cup. The retirements of Hamilton Masakadza and Solomon Mire have added to the chaos, as did a pre-mature exit from the tri-series in Bangladesh last week.

Allrounder Ryan Burl and wicketkeeper-batsman Richmond Mutumbami, however, perked them up in a fairly comfortable win in the T20I tri-series opener against Nepal in Singapore.

Nepal's legspin-bowling sensation Sandeep Lamichhane, fresh off a productive CPL stint with Barbados Tridents, extended his rich form and troubled Zimbabwe's top order with his variations. After taking the new ball in a defence of 132 on a turning track, the teenager bagged three wickets in his first two overs and had figures of 2-0-12-3 at that stage - with only two runs coming off the bat. Nepal keeper Binod Bhandari, much like Zimbabwe's top-order batsmen, struggled to read the turn - or the lack of it - and allowed two wides to sneak past him to the boundary in addition to conceding four byes.

Regis Chakabva was the first to exit, when he scooped a slower legbreak from Lamichhane to short extra-cover for a duck in the second over. Tinotenda Mutombodzi and new captain Sean Williams then fell in Lamichhane's next over, leaving Zimbabwe 28 for 3 in the fourth over. A collapse loomed when debutant Brian Chari was run out by a direct hit from Dipendra Singh Airee for a run-a-ball 19 and Timycen Maruma was bowled by Khadka for 12 off 21 balls.

Having joined forces when Zimbabwe were 64 for 5 in the 10 overs, Burl and Mutumbami saw off Lamichhane and then secured the chase in a blaze of sixes. Mutumbami lined up offspin-bowling allrounder Airee for back-to-back sixes in the 15th over before sending Abhinash Bohara and Kushal Malla over the ropes as well.

Burl, becalmed in the early exchanges, teed off in the 17th over and hastened Zimbabwe's victory with a hat-trick of boundaries off Malla.

Nepal's start mirrored that of Zimbabwe's - they were 55 for 4 in the 11th over after choosing to bat - but some hefty blows from Airee (40) and No.8 Sompal Kami (25*) hauled them to 132 for 6.

Airee, who was the second-highest run-getter in the 2018-19 Everest Premier League, Nepal's T20 league, helped his side work past the early strikes with 40 off 33 balls, including five fours. When he holed out in the 17th over, Nepal were in dire need of some late impetus at 95 for 6. And Kami provided that with a sparkling cameo that helped Nepal score 36 off their last three overs.

While Neville Madziva exploited the sluggish pitch with a variety of slower balls, including the legcutter, Tendai Chatara missed his lengths in the final over. The seamer dished out two full-tosses, and both were carted for sixes. The second full-toss was a front-foot no-ball and it resulted in a free-hit, but Chatara roused himself to concede just four off the last five balls.

Who is the best player in the NBA?

Fresh off an MVP season, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was selected No. 1 in NBArank heading into the 2019-20 season. NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard is right behind him at No. 2.

What's the best case for each player to be No. 1 overall? And how does LeBron James fit into this debate at age 34?

The ESPN Hoop Collective crew of Brian Windhorst, Jackie MacMullan and Kirk Goldsberry debate those questions, with a little help from Andrew Han and Kevin Pelton. Watch the full video here on ESPN's YouTube channel.

Disagree with the rankings? Vote on your own top five here.

This transcript has been edited for clarity and length.

More: NBArank 100-51 | 50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1

Take your pick: Giannis or Kawhi?

Windhorst: I was thinking: It's 2019. It's not 2016. It's not 2012. It's a new day in the NBA.

MacMullan: OK.

Windhorst: Who's the best player in the NBA?

MacMullan: Kawhi Leonard.

Goldsberry: No, Jackie. That's incorrect. The best player in the NBA is Giannis Antetokounmpo. And it's not particularly close.

There are three reasons why it's Giannis. No. 1, he's a better offensive player than Kawhi. No. 2, he's a better defensive player than Kawhi. And No. 3, he's 24 years old and just won the MVP.

MacMullan: I'll give you that last one. That's all.

OK. So let's take them one by one. Better offensive player. Really? Are we sure? What metric are you using?

Goldsberry: Giannis scored more points. He did it at a more efficient rate and he's the best interior scorer we've had since somebody named Shaquille O'Neal was in his absolute prime. He led the league in paint points and put up more paint points than anybody since Shaq in '03-04 or something in there.

MacMullan: Kirk, you just spent all morning telling me that paint points no longer matter in the NBA. We spent a lot of time talking about how the game is going out to the perimeter. And listen, I think Giannis will be the best player. He's just not there yet because he only shoots 25% from the 3-point line. As you know, Kawhi Leonard, one of your former players, shoots around 33.3%.

But be that as it may, Brian, let's just talk about what happened, shall we, last season in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals. OK? The Toronto Raptors are down two-to-nothing. Nick Nurse says: You know what? I've got to do something. I'm going to put Kawhi on Giannis. And Kawhi Leonard then proved why he's a better defensive player than Giannis -- or maybe a better defensive player than anyone.

Would you like to know what happened?

Windhorst: Yes. Remind me.

MacMullan: OK, in 41 matchups --

Windhorst: It was a pretty damn big important moment.

MacMullan: It kind of was.

In 41 matchups, Giannis took 12 shots, scored four points and had an effective field goal percentage (eFG) of 16.7%. Let us just say that swung things the other way. Now as it went along, Giannis got a little better at being guarded by Kawhi, until it came to the all-encompassing Game 6, which is when the best player should shine. I think we agree. Three shots, four points for Kirk's best player in the NBA.

Goldsberry: As you know from your playing days, basketball is a team game. And the Raptors need to be commended for building a superb postseason team that included Marc Gasol -- world champion Marc Gasol. It included Kyle Lowry; Serge Ibaka, a phenomenal defender; Pascal Siakam, a phenomenal defender; Danny Green, a phenomenal defender. Give head coach Nick Nurse and all those dudes credit, they shut down Giannis in that series. Nobody deserves more credit than Kawhi. He is a marvelous on-ball perimeter defender.

The two stats that make me think that Giannis is an even better defender than Kawhi are the following: Out of 38 players who defended at least 300 shots at the rim last season -- that's a lot of the biggest players in league -- he had the best rim-protection score. He's the No. 1 rim-protector of the volume rim-protectors in the NBA. He's a wing!

He also ranked second in defensive rebounding in the NBA ahead of Andre Drummond and just below Joel Embiid. This dude is supposed to be a small forward and he's blocking shots and getting rebounds. Just remember, a stop isn't a stop until somebody gets the board. The board man gets paid, as some say.

MacMullan: But here's what I would say about that -- and I don't want to disparage Giannis because I think he's a terrific player. But Mike Budenholzer was very smart in the way he used Giannis. He used him as an off-the-ball defender who sagged into the lane and protected at the rim, just in the way you've described. I would argue, quite successfully I believe, that that's a little easier to do than to guard some of the best players in the league. By the way, eight of the past nine MVPs in the league have been wing players, where Kawhi's guarding guys on the perimeter.

Now Kawhi said himself during the regular season he was coming back from what we assumed was a serious injury. Who will ever know what went on there? He probably wasn't 100 percent in terms of his pursuit defensively in the regular season. But I'll say it again: For my best player, right now -- not three years from now, because your answer could be correct three years from now -- I want the player when the game is on the line, when my season is on the line, when a trip to the NBA Finals is on the line, I want my guy defending then. And Kawhi did.

Windhorst: Well, when I don't know what the answer is -- and both of you guys have made incredible cases, I'm glad I don't have to adjudicate this myself -- I go to the man who has all the answers. And that's Kevin Pelton. Let's hear what he has to say.

Han: Kevin Pelton! Kevin Pelton! Who's the best player in the NBA?

Pelton: Kawhi Leonard. You know, he adds the most to your chances of winning the championship at this point. You saw him as two-way player in the playoffs last year.

Han: Really? So not Giannis?

Pelton: Giannis is great. I mean, it might be Giannis, but he has to prove it at the highest echelons of the playoffs. He wasn't quite the same player last season in the Eastern Conference finals. Kawhi was the best player in that series, wasn't he?

MacMullan: I'm doing the happy dance over here. Can you see my little happy dance?

What about LeBron?

Windhorst: Mr. Pelton has weighed in, but does LeBron James not merit part of the discussion?

MacMullan: Also receiving votes. Sorry. Especially based on what happened last season.

Windhorst: Remember that two years ago, the last time he was healthy, he had arguably the best postseason run of his career. And he will have now come off the longest rest he's had since he's been a professional basketball player.

MacMullan: Oh, he'll be great. He'll be great. But the setup that he's in, I think it's going to be very difficult for him to shine the way he has. I mean, for one thing, when you put Anthony Davis on a team, you have to learn to play around him. But Anthony Davis is going to be learning to play around LeBron at the same time. There is going to be a learning curve with the Los Angeles Lakers that I believe will affect LeBron's productivity.

Goldsberry: Let me add one more thing, a tried-and-true basketball cliche: The best ability is availability. And I would say this hurts both Kawhi and LeBron. Both of these guys have missed significant time in the past couple of seasons -- and that's part of this discussion. LeBron, to his credit, has been the most durable superstar of my life.

Windhorst: Played 82 games two years ago.

MacMullan: Which was a huge mistake.

Windhorst: Apparently.

Goldsberry: With his age at 34, 35, it's fair to question: OK, are we going to revert back to 82-game LeBron or are we going to start seeing load-management LeBron? Or worst-case scenario, are we going to start to see wearing-down LeBron, orthopedic LeBron, muscle-tear LeBron?

MacMullan: Cabernet LeBron's my favorite. But I will say this too: Never count out LeBron, for all sorts of reasons. But in terms of load management and Kawhi, he and the Clippers have already said he's not going to play only 60 games this season. He's going to play more. There were reasons for the way that was done in Toronto.

Windhorst: If he's healthy. We'll see.

MacMullan: Aren't you being a little smirky over there.

Windhorst: Now, what do we do here? We go to Kevin Pelton.

MacMullan: Again, I love Pelton.

Goldsberry: Oh man.

Han: Wait, Kevin, what about LeBron?

Pelton: Again, he's got to prove it. Like, he's 34 years old. He has shown in the past that he can be a different player in the playoffs than the regular season. But we didn't see that last season because he didn't even make the playoffs.

Goldsberry: Wow. He has to prove it? ...

MacMullan: That was an interesting comment.

Windhorst: I would take umbrage with that.

Goldsberry: The decade has just ended. The dude was in the Finals eight years in a row this decade. Won three Finals, three Finals MVP in two different uniforms, in very different situations. He doesn't have anything to prove.

Windhorst: But that was then.

Goldsberry: If there's anything about LeBron, he's proved it all. It's gravy time for LeBron.

MacMullan: So there's one thing we can agree on!

Windhorst: One thing he may prove is that he should have been involved in the first part of this conversation.

MacMullan: We'll see.

Windhorst: All right. Get out of here. I don't want to see you anymore. I'm done. I'm off the clock.

MacMullan: Like we don't have other things to do?

Windhorst: Jackie, where are you going to get that cabernet?

More: NBArank 100-51 | 50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1

The Detroit Tigers (46-112), already assured of the big leagues' worst record and next year's top draft pick, finished 22-59 at Comerica Park with their 10-4 loss to the Minnesota Twins on Thursday.

Detroit tied the major league record for home losses, set by the 1939 St. Louis Browns. The Tigers' minus-221 run differential at home was the worst in major league history, breaking a mark set by the 1883 Philadelphia Phillies at minus-215, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

"We didn't play well at home all summer long," Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. "I always preach that you have to care of your home and play well for your fans. We were terrible. That's got to change."

Jordan Zimmermann (1-13) lost his fourth straight start, giving up six runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. Zimmermann started 23 times this season and set a team record for fewest wins by a pitcher with 20 or more starts. Art Houtteman had two wins in 20 starts in 1948.

"I obviously wish this had gone better," Zimmermann said. "I had a few injuries and battled through some stuff. There were times I shouldn't have been out there, but that's the mindset I have. I'm going to be out there every time I can."

The crowd of 17,557 raised Detroit's home season total to 1,501,430, down from 1,856,970 last season and the Tigers' lowest since they drew 1,368,245 fans during their 119-loss season in 2003.