Duke freshman Zion Williamson, the consensus player of the year, made it official Monday, declaring his eligibility for the NBA draft.

Williamson, whom ESPN ranks as the No. 1 prospect in the June draft, made his announcement on Instagram, saying it had been the "best year" of his life and thanking those who helped make his dream a reality.

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?Thank you Duke?#thebrotherhood

A post shared by Zion Williamson (@zionlw10) on Apr 15, 2019 at 2:43pm PDT

The 6-foot-7, 285-pound Williamson captivated all of college basketball with his freakish, once-in-a-generation athleticism, his energy at both ends of the floor and his omnipresent charisma.

Williamson, 18, averaged 22.6 points and 8.9 rebounds per game while ranking second nationally by shooting 68 percent. He won the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award and was named player of the year by the Associated Press and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.

He became the face of college basketball this season, routinely coming up with at least one highlight-reel play or show-stopping dunk per game.

On May 14, the NBA will hold its lottery to determine which team has the right to draft Williamson. New York, Phoenix and Cleveland hold the best odds, followed by Chicago and Atlanta.

Williamson's decision to turn pro came as no surprise. He spent the season greeting NBA chatter with a playful wink and a knowing nod.

He said it would be "dope" to play on a hypothetical New York Knicks team with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Upon learning that LeBron James and Stephen Curry were talking about him during All-Star Weekend, he responded by saying that he is "hoping to be there competing against them next year."

During his lone college season, Williamson helped the Blue Devils earn the No. 1 ranking in the final AP Top 25 and the top overall seed in the NCAA tournament. Duke was knocked out by Michigan State in the East Regional final.

Now that Williamson is headed to the NBA, one key subplot to follow is which sneaker company will land his endorsement.

In one of the biggest moments of the season, Williamson blew out his left Nike shoe -- the PG 2.5, the signature shoe of Oklahoma City star Paul George -- and sprained his right knee in the opening minute of what became a lopsided home loss to rival North Carolina.

The impact was immediate: Nike's stock price took a hit the next day, and the shoe company sent a team of representatives to Duke's campus to investigate. When Williamson returned roughly three weeks later for the ACC tournament, he wore a pair of modified size-15 Nikes from Irving's signature line.

He opened in February at -2000 to be drafted No. 1 overall at DraftKings. After his decision to declare, he's now up to -5000.

Williamson joins RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish as classmates headed to the pros after one season. Point guard Tre Jones said he will return to school for his sophomore year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Clippers head Doc Rivers lost $2,000 dollars on the San Francisco streets Monday morning only to have a stranger give it back to him.

Rivers ended his pregame news conference prior to Game 2 of the Clippers' Western Conference quarterfinal against the Golden State Warriors by telling the story of a random act of kindness that left the assembled media in awe.

"Last thing," Rivers said after the questions finished. "Shout out to the San Francisco person who at the corner today, I was walking down the street -- this is a true story -- I reached in my pocket to grab my phone, unbeknownst to me I dropped about two grand on the street, kept walking, didn't know it. A guy tapped me on the back and said, 'That's your money.'"

Rivers, who grew up in Chicago and spent time playing for the New York Knicks during his 14-year playing career, couldn't believe his luck.

"I don't know a lot of places that that would happen," Rivers said. "But it happened today, so whoever that was, you could have had free tickets if you hadn't have ran away."

PHILADELPHIA -- It might have taken a game and a half, but the Philadelphia 76ers finally arrived at their first-round series against the Brooklyn Nets with a historic third quarter in Monday night's 145-123 win.

Leading by just one at the half after dropping Saturday's Game 1 at home to fall behind in the series, the Sixers outscored the Nets 51-23 in the third quarter with a dazzling display of precision on both ends.

Joel Embiid, a game-time decision because of discomfort in his left knee, got things started, going on a personal 8-0 run. Embiid's spark extended to the entire team as Philadelphia pushed the run to 21-2 in the first four minutes of the quarter. Philadelphia shot 6-for-8 (corralling the offensive rebound on both of those misses) while Brooklyn went just 1-for-8 (0-for-3 on 3-pointers) with three turnovers in that span.

The 51 points tied the Los Angeles Lakers for most points in a quarter in a playoff game by a team. The Lakers had 51 in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons on March 31, 1962.

Embiid left the game in the fourth quarter after rolling his ankle when Nets forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson stepped on his foot going up for a basket near the rim. Embiid went to the bench and grabbed the ankle, wincing. He stayed on the bench and did not appear to receive treatment for it.

Entering Game 2, Sixers coach Brett Brown acknowledged how important it would be to climb back into the series.

"For sure, anxiety and urgency gets expedited when you lose at home in Game 1," Brown said. "And because we've all kind of been doing this awhile, you learn. And you try to avoid this in a regular season, where the highs and lows aren't as dramatic. In the playoffs, it's hard to avoid that. Like, even as sane as I try to be and preach about psychological stability and a balance, you're mindful.

"Like, tonight is a really big game. And so you can't deny that. And so be it. That's what you coach and you play for, and there's nothing like the NBA playoffs. ... So, we feel it. We feel it, and I think that's a good thing. I really do. I look forward to watching us respond to our loss at home from the other night."

Game 3 is Thursday in Brooklyn.

Clippers coach Doc Rivers ended his press conference by telling an unprompted story about how he was walking around San Francisco, reached into his pocket to grab his phone and accidentally dropped $2,000 on the ground. He didn't know he had dropped the money and started walked away, but then someone came up to him and told him, "That's your money." Said Rivers: "I don’t know a lot of places that that would happen, but it happened today. So whoever that was, you could’ve had free tickets if you hadn’t run away.”

The Philadelphia Phillies have placed reliever David Robertson on the 10-day injured list with soreness in his pitching elbow.

Robertson, 34, has a 5.40 ERA in seven appearances this season, his first with the Phillies. The right-hander threw two scoreless innings Sunday in Philadelphia's 14-inning victory over the Marlins.

The Phillies signed Robertson to a two-year, $23 million contract this past offseason.

Philadelphia recalled right-hander Drew Anderson from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Monday in a corresponding roster move.

Arizona Diamondbacks closer Greg Holland threw a couple of tight inside pitches to the San Diego Padres' Francisco Mejia during Sunday's ninth inning, raising questions about whether it was in retaliation for Padres pitchers hitting two Diamondbacks with pitches on Saturday in Phoenix.

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said all that mattered was that Holland got three outs to end the 8-4 victory.

But Padres manager Andy Green had some choice words for the umpiring crew.

"Umpires being literally clueless on the field right now. That's inexcusable at that point in time," Green said. "The first one, OK maybe slips. The second one, we know what is going on there. It is not lost on us at all. If it is lost on them (umpires), they are not paying attention to the baseball game."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

BOSTON -- Brandon Hyde was ejected for the first time as Baltimore Orioles manager, tossed in the fifth inning Monday against the Boston Red Sox.

Hyde came out to challenge the "slide rule" after a force play scored a run. Once the call was upheld, he came out to argue with first-base umpire Mark Wegner and was ejected.

With runners on first and third with no outs, Steve Pearce hit a roller to third. Rio Ruiz made the throw to second, where Jonathan Villar made a late throw to first just as Rafael Devers was sliding into the bag and came up a bit.

Baltimore leads 4-1.

Hyde was ejected from a game last June when he was the Cubs' bench coach.

The Cleveland Indians activated two-time All-Star second baseman Jason Kipnis off the 10-day injured list ahead of Monday's game against the Seattle Mariners.

Kipnis hasn't played this season after suffering a low-grade right calf strain late in spring training. He played just 10 games in spring training because of hip, quad and calf injuries and appeared in six games at Triple-A during his recently completed rehab assignment.

In a separate move, the Indians designated infielder Brad Miller for assignment. Miller hit .250 in 13 games for the Indians.

Entering his ninth MLB season, Kipnis has played his entire career with the Indians. He was an All-Star in 2013 and 2015, but he batted a career-worst .230 in 147 games last season.

In more good news for Cleveland on the injury front, shortstop Francisco Lindor has been sent to Triple-A to begin a rehab assignment as the All-Star moves closer to rejoining the big league club after being slowed by a left ankle injury.

The switch-hitting Lindor was making steady progress from a right calf injury when he rolled his ankle while caught in a rundown during a minor league scrimmage in Arizona. Lindor batted .277 last season with 38 home runs, 92 RBIs and 25 steals.

Lindor was hopeful of playing Monday night with Columbus, but travel delays pushed his first game back to Tuesday. Cleveland manager Terry Francona didn't have a set number of games for Lindor to play before rejoining the Indians.

"It's going to depend on how he feels, and the last thing we want to do is slow him down,'' Francona said. "But we want to set him up for success. We want to make sure he's OK.''

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

LOS ANGELES -- Better late than never.

While Yasiel Puig arrived at Dodger Stadium too late to receive his National League championship ring, he was just in time to hit a two-run homer off Clayton Kershaw in his first at bat against his former team.

Puig was greeted with cheers as he approached the plate, and Dodgers fans chanted his name as he ran the bases.

Puig -- who arrived roughly 70 minutes late to a news conference that was supposed to begin at 3 p.m. PT -- said, in Spanish before the game, that he "might cry" if he heard Dodgers fans who supported him so ardently during his six-year stint in L.A. chant his name again before his first at-bat.

"I haven't seen the games; I don't know how many people, how many fans, have been coming here," Puig said of Dodger Stadium, while answering one of several questions in Spanish. "But I'm sure that when I played here, there were more fans."

Puig was a key igniter at Dodger Stadium from 2013 to 2018, a tumultuous time that began with exhilarating performances, phased into mediocrity and was accentuated by extremities. Puig energized the fans with his talent and flamboyance but often vexed the members of his organization with his recklessness, which manifested itself both on and off the field.

It was fitting, then, that Puig missed the ceremony to welcome him and the other former Dodgers involved in the trade that sent Puig to the Cincinnati Reds back to L.A. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was joined by owner Mark Walter, CEO Stan Kasten and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman outside the visiting clubhouse on Monday afternoon. Matt Kemp, Alex Wood and Kyle Farmer received their new jewelry there and made small talk.

"Puig didn't make it," Roberts said behind a wry smile.

Puig, Kemp, Wood and Farmer were all greeted with a tribute video before the game Monday night.

Roberts, who has had pleasant exchanges with Puig since the trade, said he expected the fans to provide Puig with a standing ovation.

"As well they should," he said. "This guy did a lot of things in the community and helped the Dodgers do a lot of good things."

Puig entered the series with a .163/.200/.302 slash line in 45 plate appearances for a Reds team that had won only five times in its first 14 games. But Roberts, who activated Kershaw off the injured list to start this game, expects Puig's best this week.

"When he's motivated, incentivized, he's a very good player," Roberts said. "This is as much motivation as can be in front of him."

Puig dazzled early on, posting a .305/.386/.502 slash line while displaying elite defense and infectious energy from 2013 to 2014, a stretch in which he made the All-Star team and nearly won the NL Rookie of the Year award. From 2015 to 2016, Puig was limited to 183 games. From 2017 to 2018, his slash line fell to .264/.337/.490.

During a news conference that lasted roughly 15 minutes, Puig spoke glowingly about the comradery that exists within the Reds' clubhouse. He mentioned the young players who constantly ask him questions and seem to admire him. He talked about all the meals they share together and how often they text off the field. He called Joey Votto "the best guy I've ever met in my life." And he hinted, quite strongly, about how he didn't have enough of that with the Dodgers.

"That's one of the most beautiful things I have with my new team," Puig said in Spanish. "This support, and to be by each other's side every day and talking in the locker room, on the bus, on the flight, on the field, off the field, we always have good communication, and that's what makes me not feel as much nostalgia as you might think I would feel for the Dodgers."

After 40 minutes went by in a quiet interview room prior to Puig's news conference, Reds vice president of media relations Rob Butcher approached the dais to announce that Puig had yet to arrive, drawing a chuckle from the media contingent.

"I don't know what else I can tell you folks," Butcher said. "I'm sorry."

About half an hour later, shortly after Roberts completed his session in the home dugout, Puig arrived in the interview room wearing a black T-shirt in honor of Jackie Robinson. He was told by a Spanish-speaking reporter that the media had been awaiting his arrival.

Puig slumped his shoulders.

"I was hoping they'd all leave."

World marathon record-holder features in a mini documentary ahead of this month’s big race in London

Eliud Kipchoge, the world marathon record-holder, is the focus of a short film which goes live on YouTube on Saturday (April 13).

Called simply ‘Eliud’, the mini documentary has been produced by the London Marathon ahead of the Kenyan’s appearance on the roads of the British capital on April 28.

Filmed and directed by Adam Richards, Ryan Goad and Jimmy Stone with help from Kipchoge’s NN Running Team and Global Sports Communications plus London Marathon staff like Spencer Barden and Tom Bedford, the film takes a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a man whose marathon achievements include winning in London 12 months ago, the Rio Olympics in 2016 and setting a world record of 2:01:39 in Berlin last year, not to mention his 2:00:25 time trial in Monza in 2017.

AW has seen an advance preview of the film and it shows Kipchoge and his training group training at dawn on the dirt paths and roads of Kaptagat in Kenya in addition to offering a glimpse into his humble lifestyle by showing his bedroom at the training camp, jokes with training partners about football and even clips of him doing chores around the camp.

Hands up if you knew @EliudKipchoge was a big @SpursOfficial fan…⚽️

Our short film from inside his training camp premieres this weekend.

?️ Eliud
? Saturday
⌚️ 19:00
? Facebook? https://t.co/e1MJL6Av4H
? Youtube? https://t.co/QW7DEAxHa1 #LondonMarathon #COYS pic.twitter.com/fnipSEEc00

— Virgin Money London Marathon (@LondonMarathon) April 12, 2019

There are insights into his diet. He is seen having physiotherapy and he offers an explanation of his training philosophy and how he is always looking forward at fresh challenges.

Such challenges include taking on Mo Farah in the Virgin Money London Marathon later this month.

The short movie premieres at 7pm (British Summer Time) on Saturday April 13 but can be viewed anytime thereafter here…