When Dylan Larkin made his NHL debut for the Detroit Red Wings in 2015, at age 19, it was a hockey dream. Larkin grew up in Waterford, Michigan, halfway between Flint and Detroit. He played his state championship hockey game at Joe Louis Arena and hoped one day to return as an NHL player. Not only did he come back, but he did it with the iconic spoked wheel on his jersey. He joined a team with players he grew up idolizing: Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Niklas Kronwall, Johan Franzen.

"Honestly, it was surreal," Larkin said. "My first year, when we made the playoffs, it was part of the 25-year-streak, and I played with some of my role models growing up. Just being around that energy of a playoff game at Joe Louis Arena, the feeling in the city, and being on the ice with those guys, it was a really cool thing to experience."

Larkin put up 23 goals as a rookie, but Detroit lost its first-round series to Tampa Bay. That summer, Datsyuk announced he was going back to his native Russia. And it became clear that Franzen, who missed nearly all of 2015-16 with concussion symptoms, would not play again.

Once the 25-year-playoff streak ended, the storied franchise closed the book on era. And the beginning of the next one looked bleak. For the past three seasons, Detroit has been in salary-cap hell. It finished with losing records for the first time since 1991 -- five years before Larkin was born. Detroit never had to rebuild in the span since, only reload, and now it was all catching up. The roster lacked enough top-end talent, and enough depth. The Joe shut its doors, and so began a prolonged, sad demolition. The Red Wings christened Little Caesars Arena, one of the glitziest new buildings in the league, but could barely drum up excitement for fans.

"The last few years have been tough to swallow," Larkin said.

"We were the team that was out in February, when you're sitting and have two months of the season left, and two months of games where they don't mean anything," said longtime winger Justin Abdelkader. "We weren't used to it, and that's not where we want to be."

This summer included a glimmer of hope. The Red Wings welcomed Steve Yzerman as general manager. Not only is Yzerman a Hall of Fame player for the Wings, but he comes off an eight-year stint with the Lightning in which -- through bold moves, shrewd drafting and strong development -- he built Tampa Bay into a powerhouse.

"He's a legend here, an icon," said Kronwall, who retired in the offseason, then joined the front office staff. "Then, he comes back. His track record speaks for itself, of what he did down in Tampa. So just getting him back into the organization is great. Let alone being the general manager and guiding this franchise back to where it's supposed to be, and where it should be."

Across the Red Wings organization, there was a common sentiment. Everyone was sad to see Ken Holland go (the longtime GM initially agreed to stay on as an advisor, but then took the GM job in Edmonton). After all, over two-plus decades, Holland led the team to three Stanley Cups and was in the organization for four. Yzerman's arrival also brought cautious optimism that the rebuild will now accelerate.

"It was pretty surprising, I didn't expect it to happen that fast," said goaltender Jimmy Howard. "But also excitement. Even though it was tough to see Kenny go, Yzerman being here has us all pretty excited. Sometimes you need change to move forward."

Yzerman has promised to restore a winning culture but has been overly cautious in assigning a timeline. "I don't know if it will take one, two or five years," Yzerman said. In fact, he evades sharing as many details as possible.

He won't give any clues on what he'd like his team's identity to be -- "To answer your question, yeah, I do know what I'm looking for. Do I want to elaborate on it? Not particularly. Can I? Not particularly," he said -- nor any particulars on how he would categorize the 2019-20 season as a success, besides "everyone in the organization, at all levels, getting better."

Yzerman was quiet in his first summer, signing a depth forward (Valtteri Filppula) and a depth defenseman (Patrik Nemeth) and trading for a depth winger (Adam Erne) from his former team, the Tampa Bay Lighting. It's almost as if he's using this season to suss out what he has, before putting his signature stamp on things. The worst of the cap issues have passed, and next summer, Detroit could have upward of $38 million to spend.

"It's going to take time," Kronwall warned. "In Tampa, he had a number of years where they had high draft picks, and he was able to develop them. What also made them successful was they were able to find these guys to come up every year, and it was like, 'Hey wait, where did he come from?'

"Yanni Gourde is a great example to me. Where did this guy come from? A year or two before that, he had double hip surgery. Now he's doing great, playing in the NHL, and doing it really well. So you don't always need the high-end draft picks to pan out, you need the other guys to blossom, as well."

As a talent evaluator, Yzerman is known for trusting his eye and identifying gems. So it should be no surprise that his first draft selection was a surprise: 18-year-old German defender Moritz Seider, at No. 6 overall. When Seider's name was called, cameras found him in the crowd, eyes agape and hands covering his mouth; it instantly became a gif:

Love the reaction, Moritz Seider! #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/UKAglDPdWw

— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) June 22, 2019

Through camp, there were two things everyone said about Seider. "He's a big kid" -- he clocks in at 6-foot-4, 207 pounds -- who can skate well and has "great hockey sense."

Kronwall said at the team's rookie tournament in Traverse City that Seider stood out. "There were scouts from other teams coming up to us and telling us they were pretty impressed," Kronwall said.

The Red Wings play in the top-heavy Atlantic Division. Besides the Lightning, they have to wade through the defending Eastern Conference champion Bruins, plus the star-studded Maple Leafs. The Panthers made big upgrades this season, including hiring coach Joel Quenneville, and even the Sabres look better than expected.

"Ultimately, all the teams in the league are pretty good," Yzerman said. "I don't think there is a huge difference between the best [and worst] team in the league on any given night. It's the team that plays better. We can win a lot of games by being disciplined and by outworking other teams."

Especially as they build it back up, the Red Wings are looking to develop a strong work ethic. "I don't think we have the skill level to out-skill other teams," Kronwall said. "It's going to come down to hard work. That's something the coaches have been trying to establish at training camp. We need everyone to buy in."

The Red Wings' training camp was bristling with intensity. Drills often involved bodies flying across the ice, and blocking shots (albeit often with sponge pucks).

"This camp, and [Mike Babcock's] first one, in 2005-06, were the most intense camps I've been part of," Howard said.

Yzerman said coach Jeff Blashill -- who had recently signed a two-year extension under Holland that Yzerman honored -- sets the agenda for camp. "Though I'm sure with a new general manager, guys want to make a good first impression," Yzerman said.

Returning players lament that the Red Wings weren't as bad as their record suggested over the past three seasons. "A lot of times, we've beaten ourselves, whether not playing smart with the lead or losing a late one and losing in overtime," Abdelkader said. "We've found more ways to lose games than win them."

Detroit had 23 one-goal losses last season, fourth-most in the NHL. That includes 13 one-goal losses in regulation, second-most in the league (the Canucks had 14).

"If we're healthy, we're always in games, were always right there," Larkin said. "If we could only just get that extra edge."

Larkin, 23, is likely the captain-in-waiting -- Yzerman said he needs time to evaluate before deciding on captaincy -- and the organization feels good about the chemistry he has developed with Anthony Matha, 25, and Tyler Bertuzzi, 24. Yzerman also singles out defenseman Filip Hronek, 22, and center Andreas Athanasiou, 25, as part of the young core he'd like to build around. "Erne is in that same age group, and we'll see if he can take another step," Yzerman said.

"Everything takes time, but there's no doubt that we have really good pieces in play," Kronwall said. "Just the emergence of Dylan Larkin alone. He's a special player. The drive he has -- he does it every night."

Defenseman Mike Green also notes how Larkin sets the tone for the group. "He's got this drive, like when the dog is chasing the bone and playing fetch, he just wants it so bad," Green said.

What Kronwall notices most is how Larkin has evolved. "His first year, he came in and everything went great, and then that second year had a little down year and he was frustrated. He then came into becoming a more two-way center and taking responsibility at both ends of the ice -- it's very impressive.

"Larks, he was able to get a few years with Henrik Zetterberg; I think he learned a ton just being near him, and I think there's a need for that. Now Larks got to watch it up close, now the next generation will get to see him and how he's doing it on a nightly basis. And that's how the tradition will be passed on."

On Saturday afternoon, for only the second time in their hockey-playing lives, brothers Quinn and Jack Hughes will line up on opposite sides of the ice. And this time they will do it wearing NHL uniforms, just as they had dreamed of while playing on outdoor rinks growing up, honing their preternatural skill and creativity.

Plenty of siblings have played against each other in the NHL over the years, from the Staals to the Espositos to the Niedermayers. But few have met on the ice at such a young age -- Quinn turned 20 on Monday, and Jack is only 18 -- and as such highly-touted rookies.

Jack, a center who went first overall in the 2019 NHL draft to the New Jersey Devils, was ESPN's No. 1-ranked NHL-affiliated prospect heading into the season. Quinn, a defenseman drafted seventh overall in 2018 by the Vancouver Canucks, was slotted at No. 4. Both are viewed as legitimate threats to win the Calder Trophy as Rookie of the Year.

It all makes Saturday's 1 p.m. ET matchup involving the Devils and Canucks an extra special one, featuring two of the brightest, budding American stars in the game. It will also be unfamiliar territory for a pair of brothers who have spent hours on the ice together growing up, but very little time in competitive games, whether on the same team or not.

The only other time the brothers went head-to-head was just over one year ago, when Jack led the U.S. national under-18 team with three points in a 6-3 win over Quinn's University of Michigan squad. The game began on a more playful note, with Quinn leaving his spot on defense to take the game's opening draw against the brother 19 months his junior.

Brother vs. brother...literally.

Tonight's @USAHockeyNTDP vs. @umichhockey game started with a face-off between Quinn and Jack Hughes. pic.twitter.com/1VVoTDcN3z

— Michael Caples (@michaelcaples) October 12, 2018

But don't expect that to be be repeated when they square off Saturday. Things have become rather serious quickly, especially for Jack, who was held without a point until the Devils' seventh game of the season, when he registered an assist against the New York Rangers.

Quinn is off to a stronger start. After appearing in five NHL games at the end of last season in which he registered three assists, he has one goal and two assists through six games this season. His goal came in the Canucks' home opener, and a mob of reporters surrounding Quinn after the game quickly called attention to Jack's lack of points and jokingly inquired whether he had family bragging rights.

"I think that would be kind of childish," he replied.

It was a window into the mind and demeanor of a protective older brother. And the reaction wasn't a surprise to the brothers' father, Jim Hughes.

"You know, Quinn's got a big heart, and he's very thoughtful. No one is a bigger fan of Jack than Quinn," he says. "Quinn understands Jack's capabilities and the interior expectations Jack has."

Jim and Ellen Hughes have tried to give their sons space as they begin this transition to the NHL in what will be a life-changing year for all of them.

"We've stayed out of their way, as we should. We've been really paying attention from afar," Jim says.

For both Quinn and Jack, this season is the first time they're not living within a reasonable driving distance from their family home, which has been in Canton, Michigan for the past three years. The boys were born in Florida, but the family moved around a bit, with stops in Boston and the Toronto suburbs before landing in Michigan.

Quinn had a little more experience away, moving to join the U.S. National Team Development Program (NTDP) before the family relocated to Michigan from the Toronto area. He also lived on campus, while just down the road, at the University of Michigan and now is on his own in Vancouver. But Jack was under the same roof with his parents until leaving for New Jersey -- where he now resides with Devils goaltender Cory Schneider and his family.

Having boys on opposite sides of the continent, it has been especially difficult to try to make it to games. Jim still hasn't seen Quinn play a live game this season and had been only to two of Jack's NHL games.

"Quite frankly, it's been more productive because we just stay at home and have one big computer, a smaller computer and then the big TV and we've got all the games right there," Jim says.

That will change Saturday when Jim, Ellen and 70 close friends and family members will be in attendance for the first Hughes-vs.-Hughes NHL matchup in Newark.

One family member who won't be in attendance, however, is the youngest of the three hockey-playing Hughes brothers, Luke. He will be with the U.S. national under-17 team in their USHL game against the Chicago Steel that same day. The 16-year-old has continued the recent tradition of playing at USA Hockey's NTDP while wearing the No. 43 both Quinn and Jack wore in their U17 seasons.

"We offer the same support to Luke that we gave the other two, which is why we're still here in Michigan," Jim says. "He's got his own goals and aspirations on his mind."

By all accounts, Luke has gotten off to a spectacular start to the season, having posted nine points in nine games. A smooth-skating blueliner like Quinn, Luke is unlike his brothers in one interesting way: He's the first of the boys to crack the 6-foot mark, which might shield him from some of the additional size-related scrutiny the other two faced (both are 5-10) and overcame while coming up. Luke will be draft-eligible in 2021.

Despite not being able to attend in person as much as they'd hope, Jim and Ellen haven't missed a game yet this season, sometimes needing three screens to track each of their sons wherever they might be in the hockey world. It makes for some long nights.

"When we have the doubleheader, we've got Jack playing at 7, Quinn at 10 and then Luke's up for school at 6:05 in the morning, so you wake up and you feel like a zombie," Jim says, noting the youngest Hughes boy often isn't staying up for the nightcap games. "That's how we've been juggling it so far."

Jim and Ellen know the hockey landscape pretty well themselves. Ellen was a star player at the University of New Hampshire and skated for the U.S. women's national team in the second women's World Championship. Jim, meanwhile, played at Providence College and had a long coaching career that included a stint as an assistant with the Boston Bruins in the early 2000s and the director of player development with the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2009 to 2015. The experience of watching their sons learn the ropes of playing the game at its highest level has been a rewarding experience.

"It's a whole new lens that I'm seeing it from now," says Jim, who now works in player development with CAA Sports. "When I was with the Leafs or now at CAA, you're always trying to give the proper advice or thoughts, and steer these kids in the right direction so they can navigate their careers. I'm dealing with two teenagers here, and that's interesting what it brings.

"It's a very difficult league. As I've always said in the past years, it's a humbling sport, so you've got to roll with the good and the bad, and you've got to keep pushing up the mountain and you have no other choice. You've got to keep working at your trade every single day."

The Hughes' family patriarch is offering advice only when asked, though, and has largely been pleased with the way his son are performing.

Jack has never had much trouble producing. He shattered records at the NTDP and torched the most recent men's World Under-18 Championship as the U.S. won a bronze medal. He's also the first player to go directly from the NTDP, where the team plays a mixed schedule among college, USHL and international opponents, to the NHL. It's a pretty big jump, and few know that better than Jim, who has watched players navigate those transitions to the NHL for years.

"It's a journey," he says. "It's not a track race. It's learning to play the game the right way. This is a bigger picture. It's not just one night, or two nights or three nights. We're really happy where the boys are at right now and we'll support them any way we can."

On Saturday in the Prudential Center, the cheers will be loudest for No. 43 in white and No. 86 in red in what could be the first of many meetings between the two brothers who used to fill their basement walls with puck-shaped scars, building toward their dream together.

Phil Mickelson loves to hit bombs and one of his big drives nearly resulted in an ace in Round 2 of the CJ Cup.

Playing the 353-yard, par-4 14th, Mickelson hit driver and the ball caromed off the flagstick, nearly dropping for an albatross.

Mickelson made the eagle putt, but then bogeyed his next two holes en route to an even-par 72. He's at 2 under par, 11 off the lead.

Gulam Bodi, the former South Africa and Lions batsman, has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to eight charges of corruption in a landmark case in South Africa. Bodi, who has two ODI and one T20 international cap, is the first person to be imprisoned under the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act of 2004, came into effect in the aftermath of the Hansie Cronje match-fixing scandal in 2000.

The Act contains a clause that relates directly to corruption in sporting events (see sidebar) which makes match-fixing and spot-fixing in South Africa a crime. It carries a maximum sentence of 15 years. The State asked for Bodi to receive five, which has been granted.

Bodi was charged under the Act after being banned by Cricket South Arica for 20 years for his role in contriving to fix or otherwise influence aspects of the 2015 RamSlam T20 domestic tournament. At the time, CSA said none of the fixtures were affected by fixing after the conspirators' plans were foiled and held their own disciplinary process before handing evidence over to the police.

Bodi handed himself over to police in July last year and pleaded guilty on November 4, 2018. He was due to be sentenced in January. Multiple postponements led to the sentencing being delayed to October 18. Bodi will apply for leave to appeal and an extension of his bail. He was released on R3000 bail last (US$202) last year.

Six other players, Ethy Mbhalati, Alviro Petersen, Thami Tsolekile, Jean Symes, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Pumi Matshikwe received bans of between two and 12 years. None of the other players were pursued by police. One of them, Petersen, has since served his ban and returned to working in cricket, as a commentator. Petersen was at the Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria for Bodi's sentencing.

Good day for cricket!!!

Gulam Bodi just been sentenced to 5 years in prison.

He will apply for leave to Appeal and to extend bail his bail, pending the outcome of the appeal.

— Alviro Petersen (@AlviroPetersen) October 18, 2019

Sydney Sixers 6 for 192 (Perry 81) beat Sydney Thunder 9 for 143 (Blackwell 56, Aley 3-28) by 49 runs

Ellyse Perry has been a little in the background in Australia colours at the start of the season because of the dominant form of her team-mates, but back with Sydney Sixers she picked up from last season with an agenda-setting all-round performance with 81 off 48 balls and two wickets as the Sixers began the first standalone WBBL with a handsome 49-run victory.

Last season Perry scored a WBBL record 777 runs including two centuries. She did not spend much time at the crease against West Indies and Sri Lanka over the last six weeks but made full use of being back at the top of the order with a classy innings with 58 off her 81 runs combing in boundaries.

Initially, she took a backseat to Alyssa Healy who carried on from her world record T20I score of 148 not out against Sri Lanka on this ground a couple of weeks ago with 42 off 32 balls, ended when she skied to mid-on as Pakistan allrounder Nida Dar claimed the first wicket of the tournament.

The Thunder's fielding was poor with a number of balls not gathered cleanly while Ash Gardner was dropped on 20 by Alex Blackwell. Dar, the first Pakistan player in the WBBL, was heading for respectable figures until her final went for 21.

In the final over of the innings there was what appeared to be a nasty injury when debutant Maddy Darke stumbled attempting her first run and remained down in the middle of the pitch. The Thunder had a chance to run her out but declined yet the run was eventually credited to the Sixers which left captain Rachael Haynes a little perplexed.

In the end, however, one run was far from making the difference as the Thunder did not threaten the target with the top order dispatched inside the powerplay.

Perry made immediate inroads when she trapped Naomi Stalenberg lbw then had Rachel Priest caught at backward point in the space of three deliveries. Any chances of the Thunder making an impression on the chase disappeared when Haynes skied Marizanne Kapp.

However, there was the opportunity for a glimpse at the future as 16-year-old Phoebe Litchfield played a debut innings that showcased the immense promise that has been talked about. Her first boundary was lofted over midwicket, that was followed by a scoop over short fine leg and two more boundaries followed before she was lbw trying to paddle another 16-year-old, Hayley Silver-Holmes.

Alongside Blackwell, a player at the other end of her career, they added 68 in eight overs, with Blackwell progressing to a 30-ball fifty, to give the Thunder some encouragement ahead of their match against the defending champions Brisbane Heat on Sunday.

The opening match of the tournament was watched by a crowd of 1891 in the ground and there will be a hope that figure grows over the festival weekend.

Mis Ainak Knights 155 for 6 (Noor Ali 42, Gurbaz 36, Nabi 30, Mujeeb 2-29) beat Band-e-Amir Dragons 154 for 7 (Janat 32, Naveen 3-41, Ashraf 2-31) by four wickets

Mohammad Nabi's Mis Ainak Knights chased down 155 with a ball to spare to defeat Rashid Khan's Band-e-Amir Dragons in the Shpageeza T20 League final in Kabul. Knights ensured Rashid went wicketless in his four overs, and although Mujeeb Ur Rahman plucked two wickets, they went after the other bowlers to lift the title after taking the chase down to the penultimate ball.

Knights needed 21 off the last three overs and their captain Nabi struck back-to-back fours off seamer Batin Shah to tilt the scales. But Batin hit back as Nabi holed out off the next ball for 30 off 21, but Sharafuddin Ashraf, the new man in, found the boundary off his first ball. Then, with Knights needing a mere five runs off 12 balls, Mujeeb got rid of Ihsanullah, and Shafiqullah Ghafari was run out for a duck, leaving them needing four off the final over. Tariq Stanikzai, too, was run out for a duck, but Ashraf and Fazal Niazai ushered Knights home in a fairly tense finish.

It was 17-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman Rahmanullah Gurbaz who had set the tone for the chase with 36 off 25 balls in a 71-run opening partnership with Noor Ali Zadran (42). No. 3 Ihsanullah and Nabi took charge of the innings after the openers fell, but a late-middle-order wobble tightened the chase. From 142 for 2, Knights slid to 152 for 6, but their lower order eventually bailed them out.

Having been sent in earlier in the day, Dragons lost their openers Rashid and Javed Ahmadi in the Powerplay, but middle-order contributions from Imran Janat, Afsar Zazai and Shawkat Zaman gave their innings direction; Janat top-scored with 32 off 26 balls, including three fours and a six. Dragons were 109 for 4 in 15 overs, but they took 45 off the last five of their innings to end with 154 for 7. It would not be enough against Nabi's men.

Nabi had played his part with the ball as well, claiming 1 for 34 in his four overs, while seamer Naveen-ul-Haq was the pick of the Knights bowlers with 3 for 41.

Knights' Noor Ali Zadran was the top-scorer in the league with 354 runs in seven innings at a strike rate of nearly 135, while Dragons' Nijat Masood ended as the top wicket-taker with 11 scalps, despite playing only six games.

With 19 runs to get off two overs and a well-set Calum MacLeod at the crease, all signs pointed to Scotland holding their nerve and avoiding slipping on a first-day banana skin at the T20 World Cup Qualifier. But Singapore captain Amjad Mahboob had other plans and got a little help from his friends to spark the tournament's first upset on Friday at the ICC Academy.

"Before the second-last over, we had 19 to defend," Mahboob said after the two-run win over Scotland. "I told [Janak Prakash] if you give me eight to ten runs, I am definitely going to win the match for Singapore. I had self-belief, confidence in me that I could do it and God helped me, and I did it."

While Mahboob got most of the limelight for defending eight off the final over, Prakash's role in the denouement was no less significant. The 19-year-old allrounder had scored a vital 20 off 11 balls at No. 6 to bolster Singapore late in the first innings. On the first ball of his second over, Kyle Coetzer's straight drive pinged Prakash just over the right eye, splitting open a sizable gash as blood poured onto the ground and physios from both teams ran out to assist.

But Prakash was able to get to his feet with a towel pressed against his head and walked off on his own power. It looked like he might not take any further part in the match, yet he was back on the field just 17 balls later with his head stitched up and wrapped in bandaging. Then he bravely came back into the attack and conceded 11 off the 19th. It set the stage for Mahboob to deny Scotland by claiming MacLeod and Safyaan Sharif to brilliant catches at deep midwicket by Tim David before a last-ball run out ended the match.

"I was very confident because this ground is not easy to hit boundaries," Mahboob said. "So I just bowled in the right areas. The first three balls I bowled with variations and that helped me. The last ball, I knew only if they hit a six, they could win. I bowled the leg-stump yorker and the result was in our favour."

"When the batsman hit the ball, some of the boys had started celebrating already. I was shouting at my keeper to throw the ball to me, the batsmen are still running. The fielder threw the ball again to the keeper end. Aritra [Dutta] was there and he took off the bails and the result was ours. It's a great feeling. Beating Scotland is not an easy thing. We know they are one of the strongest teams and we are very happy. We want to carry on with the same momentum in the tournament."

David's placement at deep midwicket was not the original plan either. It took some prodding from Manpreet Singh behind the stumps to reposition David on the boundary into the area where Manpreet felt Scotland were most likely to target.

"I think he is an all-round package," Mahboob said of David, who only made 1 but was instrumental in the field with four catches and a runout. "If he never clicks with the bat, he can do well in the bowling and the fielding. Thanks to my keeper, he asked me to put Tim David on the leg side. I listened to him and I think that helped me."

On the flip side, Scotland's fielding cost them badly as several missed stumpings and a drop on the boundary resulted in bonus runs for Singapore. Coetzer said his side needs to be more clinical when opportunities in the field present themselves.

"I guess it's about being a little bit more ruthless in terms of taking our opportunities," Coetzer said after his side's loss. "In T20 cricket, it's fine margins sometimes. I think both sides missed opportunities at key times in the game. We missed a couple in the first half, which possibly could have put them on the back foot, with three-four wickets down. But that's how the game goes. We seemed to have it under control towards the end. As we all know, there is no team you can underestimate in this tournament and Singapore are a very good side. In the end, they deserved their win."

Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal has donated a home to an Atlanta woman whose 12-year-old son was shot at a football game and paralyzed from the chest down.

O'Neal told WXIA-TV that Isaiah Payton's family was living in a one-bedroom apartment that wasn't accessible for people with disabilities, but they now have a home in a good neighborhood. He said he is helping furnish the home and will pay its rent for the next year.

"It's just sad," O'Neal said. "It could have been any one of us. It could have been my son. It could've been your cousin, and she was living in a one-bedroom house with her two boys, so we found her a one-bedroom house."

Two members of the board of pizza chain Papa John's board are also contributing funds, while Atlanta Mayor Lance Bottoms has shown support for the effort.

Isaiah was shot through the spine in August after a football scrimmage between two high schools. Damean Spear, 16, also was wounded and treated for minor injuries.

Isaiah's mother, Allison Woods, has said relearning how to care for her son meant she had to leave her job, adding financial stress to her emotional turmoil.

A 15-year-old was arrested Wednesday in connection to the shooting. He is being charged with aggravated assault.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

BEIJING -- China is refuting NBA commissioner Adam Silver's claim that it demanded the firing of Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey over a tweet that supported anti-government protests in Hong Kong.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang says the "Chinese government never posed this requirement."

During an appearance in New York on Thursday, Silver said the NBA was "being asked to fire [Morey] by the Chinese government, by the parties we dealt with, government and business."

Several Chinese companies, including the Chinese Basketball Association and state broadcaster CCTV, suspended engagement with the NBA after Morey's tweet.

The league and LeBron James, one of its biggest stars, have been heavily criticized by some U.S. lawmakers for the perception that they caved to the Chinese regime.