"Probably highly unlikely, I would have thought. But if you're not winning, you're learning, aren't you? I learned a lot today, had a lot of positive little wins out there with my batting. I walk away and keep being positive, keep looking to improve. That's all you can do."

Cameron Bancroft had next to no expectation of a Test recall following his battling 49 for Australia A in Perth on Tuesday night, and he had very little reason to.

He was dropped after two Ashes Tests on the basis that he had serious technical issues to confront, largely to do with the lbw target he was offering bowlers by falling over his front pad and shuffling across the crease.

Three months later, having been called up at the last minute to be the No. 6 in the Australia A batting lineup in Perth after Nic Maddinson withdrew, Bancroft gave plenty of evidence against the Pakistan pacemen that he was still fighting this tendency.

ALSO READ: Burns, Head and Bancroft named in Australia squad

But it was the fact that Bancroft was fighting at all that gave him a chance to be recalled by the selectors Trevor Hohns and Justin Langer, both of whom regard the 26-year-old as being of the kind of character they want in the team. In response to a question about whether Bancroft would have been chosen without the last-minute chance in Perth, Hohns was terse: "Difficult and hypothetical question, he has been chosen."

Alongside the likes of Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head and, in the limited-overs setup, Alex Carey, Bancroft represents a kind of Roundhead figure deemed durable, disciplined and determined enough for the international arena and its many challenges. After dropping him in England, Hohns went to great lengths to talk of Bancroft as the type of cricketer desired by the national team, needing only to make the runs to back that up.

"At that stage, we considered that he just wasn't batting very well and I'm not speaking out of school here because we told him," Hohns said in September. "Prior to that he was obviously playing very well and he's the hard-nosed, hard worker that we want in this team and he also knows that as well. I have no doubt that Cameron has quite a good future for us. It's in his court, of course, he's got to put some runs on the board, but he's the type of player the Australian cricket team want."

"Some runs on the board" is the area where it is questionable whether Bancroft has met the standard supposedly required. In eight first-class innings since he lost his Test place, Bancroft's top score is the 49 he made this week. He has fared somewhat better in domestic limited-overs games, compiling three half-centuries in six innings, but in a realm where sustained testing of that front pad weakness is less likely to occur. Combined, a tally of 379 runs at 31.58 does anything but scream "pick me".

Nevertheless, after they were confronted with a combination of three players pulling themselves out of the reckoning due to mental health issues, injury to Kurtis Patterson and a surfeit of low or mediocre returns for other batsmen in contention, from Marcus Harris to Usman Khawaja, Hohns and Langer returned to the simple fact they like the cut of Bancroft's jib. Not since Laurie Sawle and Bob Simpson nursed Steve Waugh through four years of Test cricket without a century has Langer's phrase "character over covers drives" looked more pertinent.

It is also worth noting that in terms of his England returns, Bancroft did markedly better than either David Warner, who he opened with in the first two Tests, or Harris who replaced him for the final three. Innings of eight, seven, 13 and 16 do not sound like much, but over that time Bancroft soaked up 162 balls in four innings. Harris lasted just 121 in the final three Tests and Warner 184 over all five. Had Bancroft not been beaten by a Jack Leach shooter on the final day at Lord's, he may well have been the one to help Labuschagne carry the Australians to safety, and thus hung on for Headingley.

"We thought we needed a spare batsman in the squad, number one, secondly we know he can cover up the top of the order and also in the middle order as we've seen in the recent Australia A game but he's also played in the middle order for Western Australia in one-day cricket," Hohns said. "He's an ideal person to have in our squad. He's got the ingredients of being a very good Test match player. He's a hard worker. He was left out of course in England after a couple of Test matches.

"But he's had the bit between his teeth, he's worked very, very hard on his game and the improvement in his game is quite noticeable. We're trying of course as well to keep a core group of players together in particular those that performed so well in the Ashes series in England. He has the ingredients to be a very good Test player, he just has to put the performance on the board when he's given that opportunity.

"Everything else about him is the sort of thing that Justin Langer and the selection panel want from a player."

Head, too, has been looked upon kindly in a character level, though he did also work his way into some strong batting touch with an admirable century against a strong New South Wales attack for South Australia in the preceding Sheffield Shield round. "Travis has immense experience as a young leader for his state," Hohns said. "So he's certainly back in the mix, a to play and we also like the way he goes about his business when he's around the team and the leadership skills he has to offer."

There will, of course, be plenty of players with the right to look askance at this. None more so than Joe Burns and Khawaja, despite their contrasting fortunes on selection day. Burns has, repeatedly, shown himself to be a more than capable Test batsman, most recently against Sri Lanka in Canberra when his steadying century allowed Tim Paine's team to recover from the loss of three early wickets and go on to a vast win.

And Khawaja possesses a Test record in Australia the envy of every other contemporary Australian player save for Warner and Steven Smith. But neither have enjoyed the sorts of opportunities afforded to Bancroft, leaving questions to linger about what the selectors perceive to be different. Burns, ostensibly chosen as Warner's latest opening partner, will need to watch for whether the selectors choose a different tack again and switch in Bancroft at the top once the team enters into camp.

As for Khawaja, his omission from the opening Test of the summer for the first time since 2014 may just about signal that his chances as an Australian cricketer are at an end. But as Bancroft now knows, a lot can happen in the space of a week: it just did.

HOUSTON -- LA Clippers coach Doc Rivers was ejected for arguing with official Tony Brothers at half court on Wednesday night while his son, Houston Rockets guard Austin Rivers, laughed and signaled for the officials to give his father a technical foul.

As Doc Rivers was walking off the floor back to the locker room, Austin Rivers appeared to thoroughly enjoy the moment, celebrating by waving on the Houston fans to cheer louder before motioning to his father to call him by pretending to hold a phone to his ear. The comical Rivers father-son moment came with 1 minute, 31 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of the Rockets' 102-93 victory over the Clippers.

Afterward, Austin Rivers tweeted, "Welp.... Thanksgiving is going to be weird...."

Welp.... thanksgiving is going to be weird....

— Austin Rivers (@AustinRivers25) November 14, 2019

"I did," the Houston guard said, smiling, when asked if he enjoyed the two technical fouls on his father. "I knew it was coming. I could see it. I've seen that look before, many times. Once he starts blinking his eyes fast and he starts (imitates Doc getting mad), that's when I know he is about to level up. So I just started telling Tony to get him. They got him. He's out of here."

The Clippers' head coach explained that his ejection came following a bizarre situation involving the new coach's challenge rule. Clippers forward JaMychal Green was driving toward the basket when he lost the ball. It appeared Rockets guard James Harden poked the ball out of his hands. Green then collided hard with Houston center Clint Capela, who lay on the floor for several minutes before heading to the locker room. Capela was being evaluated for a concussion after the game.

After the Rockets called a timeout while Capela was being attended to, the Clippers called for a timeout to challenge the call that the ball went off Green for a turnover with 4:35 left in the game.

Doc Rivers said he was told by two officials that even though his challenge was correct, he took more than the allotted time to officially ask for a challenge. That's when confusion set in for the Clippers.

"The refs screwed up," Rivers said. "I made a challenge. They actually said I was right in the challenge, but that I took over the 30-second time to call it. So then two refs walked over to me and told me that that means you don't win the challenge. But you get your timeout back. The arena actually put the extra timeout back up on the board. So we think we have two timeouts. I think [we have two timeouts] because two refs actually walked over to me and told me, told all of our assistants and told our players."

When Rivers called for a timeout later in the game, with the Clippers down seven with 1:31 remaining, the coach said Brothers informed him that was his final timeout. Rivers then walked to half court to tell Brothers that he was told he had two remaining by the other officials before pleading for the pair (Tony Brown and Derek Richardson) to come over from where they were standing to confirm with Brothers, to no avail.

During that timeout, Clippers guard Patrick Beverley, who had already fouled out, was given a technical foul by Brothers. Then Rivers was given two technical fouls and ejected. Harden made three technical free throws to push the Rockets' lead to 10.

Brothers told a pool reporter after the game that Rivers was indeed told that he would not be assessed the timeout on the prior would-be challenge.

"After it was determined the Clippers could not challenge the play, they were incorrectly informed they would retain their timeout," Brothers explained. "After [Rivers] was told that he lost his timeout during that challenge, as you can expect, he became upset and he was given an opportunity to try to get his composure but it didn't happen."

"He came out onto the floor when we wanted to start resuming play," Brothers added. "He was given a technical foul; the first one he says, 'I don't care.' And he continued to stay on the floor and so he was given a second technical and ejected."

And no one seemed more delighted than Austin Rivers, who got a good laugh at his dad's expense.

"I was just trying to help out the situation," Austin Rivers deadpanned. "Listen guys, I don't ever like to escalate anything. Y'all don't know me for that. I've always been a peacemaker. That's just 100 percent Doc's gotta keep his cool."

When asked if this will make things awkward around the holidays like Thanksgiving, the Rockets guard responded, "I doubt we'll go to dinner or anything like that."

"He actually is sensitive about stuff like that, so we'll see what happens," the younger Rivers said. "I love him. It was a really good moment, though. I enjoyed it a lot. I'm not going to lie to you, I really did enjoy that. It was fun."

There didn't seem to be any hard feelings on the elder Rivers' part, as Doc later responded to his son's Instagram post of the moment with a "hilarious.... Love you."

Doc Rivers said he noticed his son calling for him to get a technical foul and added that "he should" and that he "didn't care."

The head coach's measured displeasure was focused on the officials.

"Now, listen, I'm fine with that if they had told me," Rivers said about whether he had been told that he had only one timeout left instead of two. "But the officials can't tell me that I get my timeout back and then have me use it and then tell me after the fact, you don't have it. ... Those mistakes cannot happen. What bugged me the most is the two officials who told me, they ran over away. They just let Tony Brothers handle it. I mean c'mon. You can't do that. You can't do that, in a four-point game. That can never happen. Can never happen."

"There was a lot of griping all game so my guess is they were tired of all of us," Rivers added. "But, when you make a mistake like that, you can't then throw the coach out. Like you gotta own up to your mistakes. We own up to ours. We didn't play good basketball. I gotta do a better job with our offense. I'm owning up to it. They should own up to it as well."

Beverley griped about the foul calls going against the Clippers as Harden went to the line 17 times, three more than the entire Clippers team.

"I don't think we let it go away," Beverley said of the loss. "I think down the stretch there were some tough calls that obviously I feel like that weren't the right calls. I'm not here to challenge any referees, but if you watch the tape -- JaMychal Green tip ball goes out of bounds, my sixth foul at half court, out of bounds. Fouled out. Kawhi [Leonard], every time he drive he gets fouled, no one calls."

"I got a technical foul because I looked at the ref, I guess, too long and I guess you can't look at people in this league now," Beverley added. "I don't feel like that's fair. As a unit we work too hard -- coaches work too hard, players work too hard, staff work too hard -- to prepare for each game, and to let a game come down to referees and free throws I don't think is fair. I think we deserved better, I think fans deserved better, and the people who paid their hard-earned money to watch us play, both teams, I think they deserved better, also."

After the game, Austin Rivers said he doesn't think his father will hold this against him.

"Nah, he won't hold a grudge," the guard said. "He's been thrown out plenty of times before and I'm sure he will be thrown one or two more times again. I mean, I just saw it coming. You could see where the game was going. We kind of had the game pretty much won at that point. It just happened fast.

"I was just trying to get him a tech, really. It could have been anybody I would have done that with, but it was him, and it's turned into this. So yeah, that's it."

ESPN's Tim MacMahon contributed to this report.

Colin Kaepernick is a 32-year-old quarterback with 72 career touchdown passes, 13 rushing touchdowns, 30 interceptions and a Super Bowl start. But it has been almost three seasons since he played in the NFL, and during that time he has been more of a symbol and a lightning rod than a football player.

Now the league has organized a pro-day-style workout for Kaepernick in Atlanta on Saturday and invited all 32 teams to attend. This raises a lot of questions. How did we get here? What happens next? We thought we'd try to answer all of the questions for you:

Let's rewind: What happened with Kaepernick, and why is he out of the NFL?

Kaepernick ignited controversy in 2016 when he began sitting (and later kneeling) during the pregame playing of the national anthem in protest of police brutality and racial inequality. He finished that season as the San Francisco 49ers' starter, but he opted out of his contract at the end of 2016 after the team made it clear to him that it planned to release him.

Since that time, he has not played in the league and no team has had him in for a workout. (Seattle had him in for a visit but did not work him out or offer him a contract.) In October 2017, Kaepernick filed a grievance against the NFL alleging collusion by team owners to keep him out of the league. This past January, Kaepernick and the league reached a settlement.

Wait. He wasn't the only one who protested, right?

Right. Other players joined Kaepernick in protesting social injustice during the anthem. Former 49ers safety Eric Reid actually filed his own collusion grievance after it took him a long time to find a job in free agency during the 2018 offseason. (Reid eventually signed with the Panthers and has continued to kneel during the playing of the anthem.)

Michael Bennett remained in the locker room during the anthem earlier this season while with the Patriots, though he has been standing for the anthem since being traded to the Cowboys. Players such as Malcolm Jenkins in Philadelphia and Kenny Stills in Miami and now Houston have engaged in their own forms of protest.

The issue crescendoed early in 2017 following critical comments from President Donald Trump, and NFL owners passed a new rule governing anthem behavior in May 2018. But after discussions between the league and the NFL Players Association, that rule was never enforced, and the intensity of the issue has largely died down since.

What has Kaepernick been doing the past three years?

Other than suing the league for collusion and continuing his community work, which has included donating more than $1 million to charities working on behalf of social justice, Kaepernick has, according to his representatives Jeff Nalley and Jasmine Windham, been working out in an effort to stay ready for when and if he gets a call from an NFL team. Which he has not yet received.

Why is this workout happening now?

Sources familiar with the league's thinking say there are two reasons: First, a little over a month ago, Kaepernick's representatives put out a lengthy statement to address what they described as "false narratives" surrounding Kaepernick's situation and to assert that he still wanted to play.

Second, several teams have been in contact with the league office to ask about Kaepernick's status, and the league has grown tired of telling teams they're free to find out for themselves. Potentially interested teams haven't wanted to bring in Kaepernick for visits or workouts the way they routinely do on Tuesdays during the season, so the league is organizing Saturday's workout so that interested teams can check him out en masse.

Is this a part of his settlement with the league on the collusion grievance?

Multiple sources say no, that the league is not required to hold this workout as part of any settlement.

How long has the NFL been planning this?

Unclear. One source Wednesday said the league had been in conversation with Kaepernick and his representatives about a workout like this over the past few months. But another source said there had been no contact between the league and Kaepernick's reps in more than a year.

Did Kaepernick know this was coming?

No, he did not. The NFL reached out to Kaepernick's agent, Nalley, around 10 a.m. ET Tuesday and told Nalley the league would be circulating a memo to all 32 teams at 4 p.m. ET announcing the plans for the workout. That was the first Kaepernick heard of this, and he and Nalley responded with a few requests, most of which were denied.

They asked if it could be held on a Tuesday, when most in-season player workouts are conducted. They asked if the workout could be pushed back later than this week to allow Kaepernick more time to prepare. The league said no to both of those requests and told Kaepernick it would provide him with a list of the team personnel who were planning to attend the workout. (ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Wednesday evening that the NFL has reversed its decision to provide the list.)

Kaepernick tweeted Tuesday that he looked forward to seeing head coaches and general managers at the workout -- an indication of his own skepticism about how seriously teams would take the whole thing.

So why is it on a Saturday, then?

The NFL wanted to have the workout at an NFL team facility, and it didn't think a team would want to open its facility to the other 31 teams on a Tuesday or any other day when it would be going through its normal game preparation. The league determined that it could use the Falcons' facility on Saturday afternoon, after the Falcons had left for their Sunday game in Carolina.

Who's going to be at the workout?

The workout is being organized by Jeff Foster, the president of NFL scouting, who among other things is responsible for selecting college players for the annual NFL combine. The on-field workouts will be conducted by former NFL coaches.

As for which teams and who specifically from those teams will be there ... Kaepernick and his representatives are still waiting to see that list. When and if they get one, it would be surprising if most or even all of the league's 32 teams aren't represented, since there's no harm in sending someone to at least take a look. But those who show up are more likely to be scouts or personnel executives than the GMs and head coaches Kaepernick tweeted he's eager to see.

It's extremely unlikely that any head coach or GM whose team plays on Sunday or Monday will make the trip. It's possible that the Steelers and Browns, who play Thursday night, could send their coaches or GMs, or that higher-ranking officials from the four teams that are on bye this week -- Tennessee, Green Bay, Seattle and the Giants --- could go if they were interested. But that's just speculation. I have no specific information on those teams' plans in this matter.

What are the chances he signs and plays this season?

Pretty remote, and this is an important thing for people to understand. The idea that a team would sign Kaepernick now and expect him to start games this season is incredibly far-fetched.

First of all, as we've mentioned, he hasn't played in three years. Second, you just don't see teams pick up quarterbacks during the season for the purpose of starting games for them right away. Yes, Jimmy Garoppolo started the final five games of the 2017 season for the 49ers after they picked him up in a late-October trade, but that was neither the Niners' plan nor their reason for acquiring him. The Niners got Garoppolo to start for them in 2018 and beyond. The main reason he started so soon was because C.J. Beathard got hurt and the Niners were well out of the playoff race.

You don't generally see a team pick up a quarterback from outside the organization, teach him the offensive system in a week or two and ask him to step in and save the season. Translation: If you're a fan of the Bears imagining Kaepernick replacing Mitchell Trubisky by Thanksgiving and leading you to the playoffs, you're in a fantasy world.

Any team looking at Kaepernick this weekend would be doing so with the thought of adding him to its overall quarterback picture for next season and beyond. It's possible a team could sign him and get him into its building to prepare him for a 2020 role. It's also possible no team signs him until the offseason. And, as the past three years have shown us, it's obviously possible no one signs him at all.

What would it cost to sign him?

It couldn't possibly be much at this point. During that 2017 offseason, sources said Kaepernick was looking for a low-end starter or high-end backup salary, which would have been justified given where he was in his career at that point.

Of course, that information turned out to be irrelevant, since no team ever actually found out what he was looking for because they didn't ask. At this point, it's hard to imagine he could ask for much more than a veterans minimum deal with a bunch of incentives tied to playing time and performance. Teams that go to the workout might have a chance to ask Kaepernick in person, since part of the plan is for him to submit to an interview, a video of which will then be circulated to all 32 teams.

Is he good enough to help someone?

Of course he is. You can argue whether Kaepernick is good enough to open the 2020 season as a starting quarterback. But you can't argue that he's not good enough to be on a team's roster. He has been for three years. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Kaepernick's 2016 numbers with the 49ers show that he was better that season in Total QBR (49.4) and TD-INT ratio (4.0) than the average NFL backup (42.5, 1.6) has been this season.

Kaepernick as a player was not without his flaws, and there's little doubt he could have benefited from some NFL coaching during his exile. But his talent alone should have landed him a spot on someone's QB depth chart long before now.

If he does get signed, will Kaepernick continue to protest during the anthem?

In March 2017, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Kaepernick planned to stand for the national anthem that season. Of course, he never got the chance and hasn't commented on it publicly.

So is this all just a publicity stunt?

That has been suggested by some close to Kaepernick, including Panthers safety Eric Reid. But it doesn't seem likely in the strictest sense, since it's hard to see how this offers much of a potential public-relations boost for the NFL. The league is having a good year. TV ratings are up. Interest in young stars such as Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson is high. This past week featured exciting, down-to-the-wire prime-time games between high-profile teams. The anthem protests haven't been at the forefront of any coverage or discussion about the league in quite a while, and there's little doubt the NFL prefers it that way.

Those who were angered by Kaepernick's stance aren't likely to appreciate that this issue has come up again. Those who disdain the league for unfairly keeping Kaepernick unemployed aren't likely to change their position because of this workout. If anything, this injects the potential for negative PR at a time when the league is doing all right.

Now, all of that said, I'm not going to sit here and tell you that the NFL or any other multibillion-dollar corporation is acting purely out of the goodness of its heart and without any regard for its own self-interest. So if you want to believe this is an effort to head off questions that might come up from the union during collective bargaining agreement talks or from TV networks during negotiations of new deals or to ward off potential future lawsuits, go right ahead. You might be right on any or all of those fronts. But from a PR standpoint, it's hard to see how this does anything for the league.

HOUSTON -- Notorious pest Patrick Beverley's reputation as an elite defender isn't accurate, according to Russell Westbrook, who cited James Harden's 47-point performance in the Houston Rockets' 102-93 victory Wednesday over the LA Clippers as proof.

"Pat Bev trick y'all, man, like he playing defense," Westbrook said. "He don't guard nobody, man. It's just running around, doing nothing. ... All that commotion to get 47."

Westbrook and Beverley have a long-running feud, dating to the Houston-Oklahoma City series in the first round of the 2013 playoffs. Westbrook suffered a torn meniscus in his right knee that required multiple surgeries when Beverley, then Harden's backcourt mate for the Rockets, collided with Westbrook a split second after the Thunder called a timeout in Game 2 of the series.

Westbrook and Beverley have had several confrontations in the seasons since. However, there were no incidents between them during the game at the Toyota Center on Wednesday, when Beverley's primary responsibility was to harass Harden before fouling out with 1 minute, 57 seconds remaining and the Clippers trailing by two points.

Westbrook celebrated Beverley's sixth foul with a mocking wave, but they did not exchange words. Beverley wanted no part of a postgame back-and-forth via the media, declining to respond to Westbrook's verbal jab.

"Don't start that, don't start that," Beverley told ESPN as he exited the Clippers' locker room. "I don't care about that."

Several minutes earlier, Beverley expressed displeasure with the officiating. He was particularly perturbed about his sixth foul -- a call made when he bumped chests with Harden away from the ball and about 30 feet from the basket -- and a technical foul he received from the bench with 1:31 remaining.

"I got a technical foul because I looked at the ref, I guess, too long, and I guess you can't look at people in this league now," Beverley said. "I don't know. I don't feel like that's fair. As a unit we work too hard -- coaches work too hard, players work too hard, staff work too hard -- to prepare for each game, and to let a game come down to referees and free throws I don't think is fair. I think we deserved better, I think fans deserved better, and the people who paid their hard-earned money to watch us play, both teams, I think they deserved better, also."

Harden scored 10 of his 17 fourth-quarter points after Beverley fouled out, going 7-of-7 from the free throw line and swishing a pull-up 3-pointer. The 3 put the Rockets up seven points immediately before Beverley's technical foul, which was followed by Clippers coach Doc Rivers receiving two technical fouls and being ejected.

Harden, who leads the NBA in scoring, was 12-of-26 from the floor, 7-of-13 from 3-point range and 16-of-17 from the line in the win. The 47 points was Harden's second-highest total of the season.

However, contrary to Westbrook's implication, Harden did not have much success against Beverley, a two-time All-Defensive selection. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Harden was 0-of-6 from the floor when defended by Beverley, who was Harden's teammate in Houston for five seasons before being shipped to the Clippers as part of the Chris Paul trade.

"I was on his ass," Beverley said of his defense on Harden. "I don't know, I'm locked in defensively in our team concepts trying to do anything to get a win."

Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni acknowledged that Beverley fouling out was a key moment in the game.

"Big, big. At least James could take the coat off of him," D'Antoni said. "He was bugging the hell out of him. James was swatting, like, 'Get out of here.' Patrick's one of my favorite players. He's all in it for the right reasons. He's what you want on your team. If you want to win, you get guys like that."

Beverley regularly got tangled up with Harden and frequently picked him up full court, making it difficult for Harden to even get the ball. They had several verbal exchanges, including one while Beverley was on the bench in the third quarter. That started when Harden walked over after drawing a foul and continued on the court during the ensuing timeout. It ended with Harden smiling and Beverley scowling and nodding his head.

"We all know what Pat does," Harden said. "He's great at trying to get in your head and being aggressive, so I didn't try to focus on that. I tried to execute and get to my spots where I wanted to get my shots off. But we all know how great [Beverley is]. If you let him get into your head and to the body, he can be a pest."

D'Antoni said Beverley "can tick you off" but deserves respect.

"He's earned every cent they give him, and I love him," D'Antoni said of Beverley, who re-signed with the Clippers in July for $40 million over three seasons. "He plays hard."

Even Westbrook wouldn't dispute that Beverley gives great effort.

"That's good to play hard," said Westbrook, who had 17 points on 6-of-20 shooting in the win. "Playing hard is a part of the game. For people like me, I play hard every night, as well as he does, and that's a part of the game. He plays hard, that's it. There's nothing else to it.

"He plays hard, and that's good, but he doesn't make great decisions. Sometimes he does a good job defensively, but tonight James took advantage of him and got what he wanted."

LeBron James likes to pass the ball.

Legend has it he developed his appreciation for the pass as a 9-year-old playing for the Summit Lake Hornets in a rec basketball league in Akron, Ohio. He fed a diminutive teammate named Sonny Spoon by rolling the rock his way. It was the only way the little guy could control the ball without being knocked over. Spoon scooped up the delivery, put the ball in the hoop and James relished in Sonny's score more than if it was his own.

Decades later, as he's climbed into the top five of the NBA's all-time leading scoring list and made the defining play of his illustrious career with a chase-down block in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, his passing is as important of a skill as ever.

Now in his 17th season, James has shifted from small forward to point guard. And as the Los Angeles Lakers have stacked wins, so too has James racked up assists.

James is averaging 11.1 assists per game to lead the league, hitting double-digits in eight of Los Angeles' first 11 games.

Should he maintain his lead, it would be the first assist title of James' career. Can he keep it up?

"I don't know," James said recently. "That's never been a goal of mine... the assist has always been my favorite because it gives my teammates an opportunity to score. And that's what's always mattered to me."

Individual statistics don't matter much to James these days -- earlier this month he even wore a hat embroidered with a patch that read "awards mean nothing" to a game in Dallas -- but his ability to continue to imprint control on the game as he enters his mid-30s does matter.

If James keeps dishing dimes at this rate, he would obliterate the record of the best assist average for a player in his 17th season or later (John Stockton currently holds that mark with his 8.7 assists per game in 2000-01).

"He's going to make the right play every time and he delivers the ball on-time, on-target everywhere or just about everywhere he throws it -- to the 3-point line or lobs at the rim or back cuts or whatever," said Lakers coach Frank Vogel. "He's just one of the best passers I've been around."

James' first of a dozen dimes Wednesday night came just seven seconds into a 120-94 win against the Golden State Warriors, a pinpoint lob sent from beyond the 3-point to JaVale McGee, who readily deposited it inside the rim.

James' Lakers teammates recognize that they'd better be alert at all times when sharing the court with James.

"Playing with LeBron, he's the center of attention at all times," said Kyle Kuzma. "Everybody's looking at him, so sometimes when guys come here, they're not really used to having wide-open shots, and that's something that he supplies."

Not all open shots are equal. Just like the defense pays extra attention to James, so too do the fans. When James provides an open look, it can feel like every eye in the arena turns towards the shooter.

"My rookie year it was a lot of pressure," said Quinn Cook, now on his second stint alongside James after playing with him in Cleveland during the 2015 preseason. "I was like, 'Wow, LeBron is passing me the ball. I got to make it.' But I'm kind of over that phase now. He puts us in great positions to be successful and you just want to shoot the ball with confidence."

Avery Bradley gets the impression that some of the passes James makes are only possible because of the four-time MVP's uncanny court vision.

"I was joking the other day with one of the guys on the bench," Bradley recalled. "I said, when I watch film, and a coach says, 'You should have seen this pass ...' He sees that during the game in real-time. Just incredible."

Rajon Rondo won an assists title in the 2015-16 season, averaging 11.7 helpers with the Sacramento Kings. He says there's no real secret to earning the distinction.

"What does it take? Guys making shots," Rondo said.

Rondo was reticent to rank his and James' passing ability -- "It might be 1A and 1B," he said -- which is how James and Los Angeles' bigtime offseason acquisition, Anthony Davis, have been similarly described.

It is vital for the Lakers to get the most out of Davis this season, not just to give themselves their best chance to win, but to pave the way for the big man to re-sign with the franchise as a free agent next summer.

Putting James at point guard has assured that Davis will be a focal point of the Lakers' offense. Through the Lakers' first 11 games, Davis received 29 assists from James, according to data from ESPN Stats & Information, more than any other Lakers player.

"I told him give me the ball. He's doing a great job with that," Davis said with a laugh. "He has great vision he can pass with the best of them, so it's tough for them to stop that pick-and-roll, with me setting the pick and he handling the ball and then when that's clogged up he's able to find our shooters on the weak side so he's making all the right plays."

And James is just as likely to pick apart a team with the pass in the open court.

Last season, Luke Walton employed an egalitarian transition game. Whoever grabbed the long defensive rebound or burst through the passing lane to swipe the steal - be it a point guard like Lonzo Ball or Rondo to even Brandon Ingram, Lance Stephenson or Michael Beasley - was empowered to be the engine on the break.

Vogel, however, gave the keys to the car back to James and wants him driving as much as possible.

"We've created an environment where we want to have a primary ball-handler, whereas last year, it was both LeBron and other guys who could get out and push on the break," Vogel said. "Most fast-break teams have that type of mindset of how it is and how anybody can push, anybody can handle. We've gone a little bit old school that way. That's probably why you're seeing LeBron more in that situation."

Earlier in his career, James caught heat when he passed to teammates in end-of-game situations rather than call his own number.

As time's gone by, those instincts have shifted; James has come to relish being the guy to carry the consequences of the make-or-miss proposition. He has assisted on six go-ahead field goals in the final 10 seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime (seven including the playoffs), according to ESPN Stats & Info, while he's made nine such shots in that span (17 including the playoffs).

Yet, unmistakably, if he sees an open teammate - be it George Hill under the hoop in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on the wing in a regular-season game against the Orlando Magic last season - James will find him.

"He's probably one of the best decision-makers in the history of the game," Vogel said.

The ball might go through James, but play with James and you will get the ball.

"I'm just trying to play within the system of what we're trying to do in the game plan, and get my shooters and get my bigs opportunities," James said. "I don't get the assists if my teammates don't make the shots, that's what it all boils down to. So they deserve all the credit."

New South Wales 8 for 444 dec (Smith 103, Henriques 91) and 0 for 98 dec beat Western Australia 191 and 128 (Starc 4-57) by 223 runs

New South Wales surged to their fourth straight Sheffield Shield victory as Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood did most of the damage on the final day to earn a crushing 223-run victory.

They have given themselves significant breathing space at the top of the table as they prepare to lose their Australia players to international duty with two more rounds of matches before the competition breaks before Christmas for the BBL. It is the first time since 1997-98 that New South Wales have won for Shield matches in a row.

"It was an interesting wicket, lucky we won the toss and batted first," Starc said. "One of the slowest wickets I've played on in a few years. Never ideal when a game is dictated by the toss but we were fortunate to bat first. Four from four is a very strong position to be in."

With Australia having limited-overs commitments when the Shield resumes in February they are unlikely to see much more of their all-format Australia players in the competition. Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon are not part of Australia's short form teams so could feature again later in the season.

Western Australia were already three down overnight and it didn't take long for New South Wales to make further inroads when Marcus Stoinis drove Starc to backward point.

With the ball continuing to reverse significantly, Hazlewood then claimed two wickets in two balls as he burst through Ashton Turner's defence with a beautiful delivery that took off stump then removed Cameron Green first ball as he paid the price for shoulder arms for the second time in the match. Hazlewood was a whisker away from a hat-trick as Josh Inglis also let his first ball go inches from off stump.

At this point D'Arcy Short was the only batsman into double figures but his innings was halted when he was given lbw to Starc and did not look at all impressed with the decision.

A swift finish appeared likely but Inglis and Ashton Agar resisted for 28 overs before Inglis fell in hugely unlucky fashion after lunch as he drove Steven Smith into the boot of silly point with the catch rebounding to short leg. Agar was then run out for 101-ball 14 before Hazlewood castled Liam Guthrie to close out the match.

VAR this, VAR that, VAR, VAR, VAR. Yep, that's all we talk about these days. And it's all we're likely to talk about for years to come. It's the Brexit of Premier League football.

So yes, this is another article on VAR -- but with a difference! Just how much impact has VAR had on the table?

ESPN and the team led by Dr. Thomas Curran at the London School of Economics have compiled the Anti-VAR Index, which shows how the league would look if VAR decisions were removed from games.

But we're not just removing goals here to get the amended results. That would be far too simple. We've developed an algorithm that takes into account many factors, such as form, performance and relative strength, then we've put that into the mix with the VAR decisions and got a whole new set of results.

Man City shoot up to second, Sheffield United move closer to the top four, Wolves are into the European places and Southampton get cut adrift at the very bottom.

Liverpool have surged clear at the top, and believe it or not VAR has not been working in Jurgen Klopp's favour with overturns having no effect on their points tally. Liverpool are given a victory at Manchester United (drew 1-1) and a draw at Chelsea (won 2-1), which even themselves out. Maybe the title isn't going to be won in the VAR room.

Manchester City, however, climb into second and the gap is cut to seven points, with two extra points from their late winner against Tottenham that was ruled out by the VAR after the ball hit the arm of Aymeric Laporte.

But the VAR cannot help Tottenham's poor league position, with a loss of the point at City dropping them into 15th.

Leicester City have been one of the real winners with VAR, having four decisions go in their favour -- more than any other club. Brendan Rodgers' side lose three points in the Anti-VAR table, which sees them drop to fourth. And they also lose a total of eight goals, with the red card for Ryan Bertrand removed in the Foxes' 9-0 win at Southampton to make that result a 3-0 win.

Speaking of Southampton, they might have that thrashing minimised but they still lose four points to drop to the foot of the table with an eight-point gap to safety. Their win at Sheffield United becomes a defeat, while they lose the point they gained at Wolves. Without VAR, Saints are in serious trouble.

However the Eagles are soaring with VAR, as Crystal Palace drop from 12th to 17th, into the midst of a relegated battle. Brighton also slide, down three places into 11th after their VAR-inspired penalty comeback against Everton.

If there's one club that really should hate VAR it's Wolves, who pick up four points -- more than any team in the Anti-VAR table -- to climb to sixth. While the VAR has only got involved in their matches twice, they have been key incidents against Leicester and Southampton in games that they drew.

It will come as no surprise to Chelsea fans that they are the most hard done by, with all four VAR overturns going against them. However only one goal, when Mason Mount was flagged offside against Liverpool, made a material difference to their results. Arsenal and Manchester United both gain a point but lose a place due to Wolves' ascent.

It's no wonder Marco Silva hates VAR so much and wants it scrapped altogether, because the biggest winners by league position are Everton, moving up six places from 15th and into the top half of the table after the loss at Brighton becomes a victory.

Sheffield United are three points better off, which moves them to within touching distance of the Champions League places. West Ham have three points added too, nudging them up two places to 14th.

Latest VAR stats

Total overturns: 29
Leading to goals: 7
Disallowed goals: 18
Penalties awarded: 5 (2 missed)
Penalties overturned: 1
Red cards: 1
Most net decisions: Palace, Leicester 3
Most net against: Chelsea 4
Most involvement: West Ham 6
Most decisions for: Leicester 4
Against: Chelsea 4

Only club yet to experience overturn: Newcastle

Yet to get overturn in favour: Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Newcastle, Sheffield United, Wolves

Yet to get overturn against: Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Watford

Joe Burns and Travis Head are set to fill the batting vacancies in Australia's Test line-up after being named in the 14-man squad for the two matches against Pakistan.

Cameron Bancroft, who was dropped after two Ashes Tests, has also been called up after his late inclusion to the Australia A side while the uncapped Michael Neser has been included as another seam-bowling option in a squad that covers both a day Test in Brisbane and a day-night Test in Adelaide. It was announced earlier in the day that Will Pucovski had asked not to be considered for selection as he manages his mental health.

"We feel [Joe] was unlucky to miss the Ashes squad," national selector Trevor Hohns said. "Joe's record speaks for itself, he has Test hundreds on the board and has combined very well with David [Warner] in the past. We also like the feel of a right-hand, left-hand combination at the top of the order.

"Travis scored a hundred against a very good New South Wales attack just a few weeks ago and also offers the option of part-time off-spin. Matthew Wade was superb as a specialist batsman through last summer, had a solid Ashes series with two hundreds and strong start to the current domestic season.

"We anticipate Matthew and Travis will give us a strong middle order in support of the top four. Cameron Bancroft is someone who has the ingredients of what we believe makes a good Test cricketer and rounds out our batting group in the squad."

Burns' recall means Marcus Harris, who was the incumbent opener having played the last three Ashes Tests, loses his place while Usman Khawaja has paid the price for a poor start to the domestic season having been dropped in England.

Harris managed just 58 runs in six innings after replacing Bancroft during the Ashes. Though his form has been steady at the start of the domestic season with a century, which came on a featherbed at Junction Oval in Melbourne, and two half-centuries, he has been cut.

Burns failed twice in the Australia A match against Pakistan in Perth but the selectors, Trevor Hohns and Justin Langer, have opted to return to a player who has four centuries in 16 Tests including 180 in his most recent outing against Sri Lanka in February. A stint with Lancashire was cut short by post-viral fatigue syndrome and though he returned for the Australia A tour of England - and scored a century - he was left out of the Ashes squad.

Head, who will also be joint vice-captain with Pat Cummins, was part of Australia A's collapse to 9 for 57, but a century in the previous round of Sheffield Shield has been enough for a swift return.

Bancroft has come up on the rails to earn his place after a lean start to the season for Western Australia and not initially being included in the Australia A side until Nic Maddinson withdrew for mental health reasons. However, after Australia A subsided on the second day in Perth, he top-scored with 49 from No. 6 and has the versatility to bat in any position among the top order if required.

Neser, who was part of the Ashes squad, has been rewarded for a strong start to the season and will push for the third pace-bowling slot alongside Mitchell Starc, who has been in outstanding form for New South Wales, and James Pattinson although one of the latter two will be favoured to join Cummins and Josh Hazlewood at the Gabba. However, Neser's impressive performance with the pink ball against Pakistan A in Perth could put him in contention for the day-night Test in Adelaide and he has effectively taken Peter Siddle's position.

"We are blessed to have four of the best fast bowlers in the world challenging each other for spots and most importantly playing as a group," Hohns said. "Cummins, Starc, Hazelwood and Pattinson are daunting pace prospects for any opposition, particularly at home. Michael Neser adds to that group with his ability move the ball both ways, giving the team another bowling option depending on the conditions."

Mitchell Marsh, who took the No. 6 slot at The Oval in September and claimed a maiden five-wicket haul, was not in contention for this squad having broken his hand punching the dressing room wall at the WACA last month.

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