SAN FRANCISCO -- Adrian Wojnarowski, the award-winning former ESPN sportswriter who redefined the journalism industry with his breaking news prowess, was honored Friday with the Curt Gowdy Media Award.

"I only had ever hoped to have a career as a sportswriter, and so to me this honor is reflective of all the people who believed in me, gave me opportunities, helped me along this road, and that's what comes to mind first," Wojnarowski told ESPN shortly after Friday's announcement. "So many of my idols, from Jackie MacMullan to Michael Wilbon to Doris Burke to Harvey Araton, have been honored previously, and it's beyond my wildest dreams to be in that company."

Wojnarowski's journalism career began in his native Connecticut in Waterbury, where he covered the University of Connecticut before moving on to the Fresno Bee in California and then the Bergen Record in New Jersey.

He went to Yahoo! Sports in 2007, where his relentless drive created a seemingly never-ending series of breaking news, which came to be known as "Woj Bombs." A decade later, he joined ESPN in his hometown of Bristol, Connecticut, and spent the next several years solidifying his place as one of the most influential sportswriters ever.

"I came along at a unique time in media," Wojnarowski said, "and I came along at a time media and the league were changing, and I was the beneficiary of good timing and incredible support from people I worked with at the NBA, ESPN and Yahoo."

In September, Wojnarowski's last "Woj Bomb" might have been his most shocking one of all, when he retired from journalism to step into a new role as the general manager of the men's basketball team at his alma mater, St. Bonaventure University.

Wojnarowski was one of four Gowdy award winners announced Friday, receiving the honor in the insight category.

Michelle Smith, a longtime chronicler of women's sports and specifically women's basketball, won the print media award, having written for ESPN, espnW, the San Francisco Chronicle and AOL FanHouse, among other publications.

There were two recipients of the electronic media award: Clark Kellogg, the longtime CBS college basketball analyst, and George Blaha, the legendary Detroit Pistons play-by-play man. Kellogg has been an essential part of CBS' college basketball coverage since 1993, especially its annual chronicling of March Madness. Blaha is in his 49th season calling Pistons games. According to the team, he has called more than 3,700 regular-season games and more than 260 playoff contests.

The Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award winner is longtime Celtics public relations official Jeff Twiss, who began working for the franchise in 1981 and has been part of four championships in Boston.

"To be honest, I'm still pinching myself till my arm hurts," Twiss told ESPN. "Red Auerbach was my boss for a few years, and I got to spend some time rubbing shoulders with people at the Hall of Fame and could only dream about being in there with them one day, and now that dream is a reality."

The Gowdy winners will be honored on Sept. 5-6 alongside this year's Naismith Hall of Fame class, for which the finalists were also announced Friday.

Shaquille O'Neal is staying with TNT Sports on a new contract worth more than $15 million per year, Front Office Sports reported Friday.

The news means the cast of "Inside the NBA" is staying together even as TNT is set to license out the show to ESPN starting next season.

TNT was the odd network out in the NBA's recent TV rights negotiations, as NBC and Amazon joined previous rightsholder ESPN in inking deals for basketball games.

That left TNT without a need for pregame and postgame NBA shows. TNT is licensing "Inside the NBA" to ESPN in exchange for a package of Big 12 college football and basketball games.

Per Front Office Sports, Charles Barkley and Kenny "The Jet" Smith are staying on "Inside the NBA," although Barkley had interest from NBC and Amazon.

"I'm informing NBC that I will not accept their offer," Barkley said on the podcast he co-hosts with Ernie Johnson, the anchor of "Inside the NBA." "I'm gonna cancel future meetings with Amazon. ... My heart is always and will be at Turner Sports."

Barkley's most recent contract extension, signed in 2022, pays him $21 million per year.

As for O'Neal, the Hall of Fame center best known for his time with Kobe Bryant on the Lakers, also heard from NBA and Amazon, according to a CNBC report.

NBC is in talks with Carmelo Anthony for a studio analyst position and Reggie Miller and Jamal Crawford as color commentators, per Front Office Sports.

MILWAUKEE -- Khris Middleton thanked Milwaukee for helping shape him "into the person and player I am today" a week after the Bucks traded the three-time All-Star to the Washington Wizards.

"From the moment I stepped foot in this city, you embraced me," Middleton said Friday in a social media post. "Together, we experienced the rebuilding years, the emergence of a championship contender, and ultimately, the unforgettable journey to the 2021 NBA Championship. That magical run will stay with me forever -- the late-game shots, the comeback victories, and most importantly, bringing the Larry O'Brien Trophy back to Milwaukee after 50 years."

Middleton, who had been with the Bucks since the 2013-14 season, was sent to Washington at last week's trade deadline along with 2024 first-round pick AJ Johnson in a deal that brought Kyle Kuzma to Milwaukee. Both teams also received draft compensation in the trade.

Bucks general manager Jon Horst said this week that trading Middleton "has to be the hardest thing transactionally that I've ever done, from the human side of it, the roster side of it, the culture of the team, our community."

Middleton thanked the Bucks in his post.

"To the Bucks organization: Thank you for believing in me, developing me, and giving me the opportunity to grow from a trade piece into an All-Star and champion," he said.

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Middleton, 33, is the Bucks' career leader in 3-pointers (1,382) and ranks behind only two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo in games (735) and minutes (23,039). He's third in franchise history in points (12,586) and assists (2,990).

Injuries limited him to 33 games in 2022-23 and 55 in 2023-24. He didn't make his 2024-25 debut until Dec. 6 after recovering from offseason surgery to each of his ankles.

"To the Milwaukee community: This city has become my home," Middleton said. "The relationships built, the community initiatives we've worked on together, and the countless memories made both on and off the court will stay with me forever.

"As I begin this new chapter, I'm excited for the opportunities ahead. But Milwaukee will always hold a special place in my heart. This isn't goodbye -- it's thank you."

SAN FRANCISCO -- Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard and a team they were part of -- the gold medal-winning 2008 U.S. Olympic men's basketball team -- headline the group of finalists for this year's Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class announced Friday.

Among the other nominees are women's basketball legends Sue Bird, Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles. Coaches Billy Donovan and Mark Few were also nominated.

Anthony, a 10-time All-Star, is 10th on the NBA's all-time scoring list with 28,289 points. He also led Syracuse to a national championship in 2003.

Howard was the preeminent defensive presence of his era, winning three straight NBA Defensive Player of the Year awards (2009 to 2011). He made eight All-NBA teams, led the Orlando Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals and won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.

The 2008 Olympic men's team returned Team USA to the top spot internationally after it earned a bronze medal at the 2004 Games and no medals at the 2002 and 2006 world championships. The 2008 team included Anthony, Howard, the late Kobe Bryant, Jason Kidd, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Chris Bosh and LeBron James. It was assembled by Jerry Colangelo, the chairman of the Hall of Fame.

Moore won two national championships at the University of Connecticut and four WNBA titles in her seven-year career with the Minnesota Lynx before she retired in 2018 during her prime to pursue criminal justice reform. Bird also won two titles at UConn and four in the WNBA during her career with the Seattle Storm and is considered one of the greatest point guards in the history of women's basketball.

Fowles was a dominant interior presence at LSU, which she led to four Final Four appearances. As a professional, she won two titles with Moore as a member of the Lynx. She was the WNBA's MVP in 2017.

Donovan led Florida to four Final Four appearances in 19 seasons with the Gators, winning back-to-back national titles (2006-07). Those title-winning teams included longtime NBA stars Al Horford and Joakim Noah. Donovan left the college game and has spent the past decade coaching the Oklahoma City Thunder and Chicago Bulls.

Few is the winningest active coach by percentage at Gonzaga and has led the Bulldogs to two national championship games (2017, 2021) and 25 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances.

Other Hall of Fame finalists include longtime NBA referee Danny Crawford, five-time All-Star forward Marques Johnson, longtime college coach Jerry Welsh, three-time NBA All-Star Buck Williams, former Stanford and WNBA star Jennifer Azzi, women's basketball pioneer Molly Bolin, Serbian basketball coach Dusan Ivkovic, Miami Heat owner Micky Arison and Israeli basketball legend Tal Brody.

The group moves to the final round of the nomination process, when a panel of 24 anonymous voters will consider the candidates. A candidate has to receive votes from at least 18 of those 24 panelists to gain election to the Hall of Fame.

The 2025 class will be announced April 5 in San Antonio during the NCAA Men's Final Four.

Enshrinement weekend is Sept. 5-6.

The 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend has arrived with festivities taking place in the Bay Area.

The Golden State Warriors will host NBA All-Star Weekend for the first time since 2000, a year full of iconic moments such as Vince Carter's performance in the dunk contest. The events will take place at Chase Center and Oakland Arena.

The star-studded weekend will begin on Friday with the annual Celebrity Game before transitioning to the Rising Stars game. Saturday's slate includes the skills challenge, 3-point contest and slam dunk contest. The 74th NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday.

This year's game features a new format with four teams competing in a mini-tournament. Three squads -- Team Chuck, Team Shaq and Team Kenny -- were drafted by TNT's "Inside the NBA" analysts, while the fourth, Team Candace, is made up of the Rising Stars game champion.

The tournament includes three games: two semifinals and a championship, with each player on the winning team earning $125,000. Second-place players receive $50,000, while those on the third- and fourth-place teams take home $25,000 each.

Here are the highlights from the 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend.

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BROSSARD, Quebec -- Team Canada is battling more blueline drama at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

The country's top defenseman Cale Makar missed Friday's practice with an illness, putting his status for Saturday's game against the USA in jeopardy.

Canada was already down to just six healthy defensemen after Shea Theodore was knocked out of the tournament with an upper-body injury sustained Wednesday against Sweden. Makar was a workhorse for Canada as the team had just five defenders on the bench for much of that game, finishing with a team-high 28:06 TOI.

Canada's coach Jon Cooper could only speculate on Friday what Makar's status would be by puck drop.

"Expect is a big word," Cooper said on whether he anticipated Makar being available. "But I'm confident. I'm confident he'll be there."

There is a contingency plan in place if Makar hasn't recovered. Sources told ESPN that the NHL and NHLPA agreed Friday that Canada's circumstance warranted bringing Dallas Stars defenseman Thomas Harley to Montreal in case the team has only five healthy skaters for its backend by Saturday night.

Travis Sanheim was Canada's original seventh defenseman already elevated to replace Theodore. Harley -- who's expected to arrive in town by Friday night -- can be around the team but isn't allowed to participate in anything on the ice unless Makar is officially ruled out for the game.

While Canada waits to see how its backend comes together, Cooper is mulling another significant change to the team's goaltending. Cooper wouldn't commit to a starter for Saturday's matchup after Jordan Binnington got the nod in Wednesday's 4-3 overtime win over Sweden. Binnington recorded 23 saves and an .885 SV% in the victory.

Adin Hill was Binnington's backup in that game; Sam Montembeault has been the country's extra goalie so far.

Cooper said he was going to talk to the goalies first before making a final decision.

One lineup change Cooper would cop to was inserting Sam Bennett for Travis Konecny. Bennett was a healthy scratch Wednesday against the speedy Swedes, but he'll add some needed physicality to Canada's group when it takes on the USA -- a team that levelled 32 hits on Finland in its 6-1 win over that country Thursday night.

Canada is preparing for the USA to invoke a similar strategy in Saturday's meeting, and Bennett will help balance the scales.

"I thought [Thursday's] game was maybe a little bit heavier than ours was against Sweden," Connor McDavid said. "They've got big bodies. But [Bennett] is big and strong. Plays with a little bit of an edge, as we know. I'd expect him to bring that, I expect him to bring his energy. He scores big goals and does all of it."

Having Bennett in the mix will pit him against Florida Panthers teammate Matthew Tkachuk. It was the gritty Tkachuk leading the U.S. to victory with three points in Thursday's game, and Cooper couldn't help wondering whether the two will find each other on the ice come Saturday.

"I'll be interesting if Sam and Matthew meet in a corner at some point," he said.

On the USA side, coach Mike Sullivan didn't say Friday if he'd make further adjustments after shuffling his own defense pairings early on against Finland. The USA didn't hold a practice following Thursday's win.

MONTREAL -- Kevin Lankinen will start in net for Finland against Sweden in the 4 Nations Face-Off on Saturday after Juuse Saros allowed six goals on 32 shots in a 6-1 loss to the United States in each team's tournament opener, coach Antti Pennanen said.

"We have three good goalies," Pennanen said after practice Friday. "It's a good situation for us. Juuse, I think he was really good the first 40 minutes, but 6-1, so we need to do something. And Kevin, he has played good games lately, so that was behind that decision."

Saros' struggles stretched into the 4 Nations from his rough half-season-plus in the NHL with the Nashville Predators. The 29-year-old has lost 29 of his 41 starts, ranks 38th among goalies in goals-against average with a 2.95 and is 33rd in save percentage with an .899.

Asked how he would evaluate his performance against the U.S., Saros said: "Obviously you always want to help your team even more on games like that."

Saros' new, eight-year, $61.92 million contract does not even kick in until next season.

Lankinen is 19-8-7 for the Vancouver Canucks with a 2.53 GAA and a .905 save percentage, making just above the league minimum at $875,000. A late bloomer who was never drafted, he grinded through minor leagues in Finland and North America before breaking through.

"I feel like there's still more -- a lot more -- to accomplish, so many more levels to step up to, and I feel like every single season so far has been good progress," Lankinen said. "Some of the pieces are coming together, but at the same time I recognize there is so much more to achieve."

Pennanen hinted at making other lineup changes after scratching Kaapo Kakko and Juuso Valimaki on Thursday night but would not reveal much. Valimaki said he was not playing.

"Could be, but tomorrow you will know about those," Pennanen said. "Again, 6-1, I think you need to do something but I know more exactly tomorrow, and those changes are public tomorrow."