LAS VEGAS -- Kyle Kuzma was fast asleep in a Shanghai hotel when his manager woke him up in the middle of the night to tell him the Los Angeles Lakers had traded for Anthony Davis.

In a blockbuster trade, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart -- once considered the future of the Lakers -- were dealt to New Orleans for the Pelicans' All-Star big man in June.

Kuzma, now the final young Laker standing from the core group Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka assembled, says he's ready to become that third star LeBron James and Davis will need after free-agent target Kawhi Leonard opted to join the LA Clippers in free agency.

"I don't feel no pressure, but I believe that I am capable of being that superstar," Kuzma told ESPN. "I put a lot of work in. My progress through my journey shows that I can be there. I developed every single year, dating back to college, and I don't see that development stunting at all."

Kuzma added, "Last year I didn't shoot the ball well, and I still averaged almost 20 [points per game]. If I can shoot the ball well and keep developing the facets of my game defensively, I don't see why I can't [be that third star]."

From making it out of the tough environment of Flint, Michigan, to becoming a little-known, late-first-round draft pick out of Utah, Kuzma noted how he has continually beaten the odds and exceeded expectations.

Currently on the USA Basketball training camp roster, the 24-year-old hopes to launch himself into the biggest season of his basketball career by making the U.S. team and playing in next month's FIBA World Cup. It's a big summer for the third-year forward, who averaged 18.7 points and 5.5 rebounds last season. Kuzma, who saw his 3-point shooting dip from 36.6% as a rookie to 30.3% last season, believes he fits in seamlessly alongside James and Davis.

"I've never been a ball-dominant guy," Kuzma said. "I've always played off the ball. It is going to be a little bit easier, going to have a lot of open shots. It is my job to trust my summer workouts and what I've done. Just breathe, focus and knock those shots down, because I'm going to be open."

The Lakers once envisioned Kuzma drilling perimeter shots off passes from Ball and Ingram. That ended in June, with Kuzma learning of the trade from his manager, Vin Sparacio, half a world away while in Shanghai for business.

"It's like 3 a.m., I'm asleep, he ran into my room and damn near threw water on me," Kuzma said. "For those guys, especially speaking of Zo, BI, they are best when they have the ball in their hands. It is kind of tough when we get vets that are ball-dominant guys. So it kind of stunted their growth."

Now, Kuzma sees Ingram and Ball -- the No. 2 overall picks in 2016 and 2017, respectively, by the Lakers -- thriving and being able to play the way they need to in New Orleans alongside Zion Williamson.

"They were excited," Kuzma said of Ingram, Ball and Hart after the trade. "It's a little bit less pressure. They didn't [actually] say that. But obviously being in L.A., there's more pressure. They can be themselves now. They can go to New Orleans and develop into the superstars they were supposed to be."

Shortly after Kuzma learned about the Davis trade, he texted Ingram, Ball and Hart in the group chat they have. It wasn't long ago that all four used to roast one another with jokes about what each was wearing or their appearances.

They've since outgrown the roasting. But they haven't grown apart despite now being on different teams.

"Really, they told all of us," Kuzma said of the Lakers not wanting to part with their former first-round picks. "They didn't want to trade none of us, obviously. We were a great young group of guys that had a lot of promise. Anytime you got three, four young guys as a core in the NBA, you don't want to trade those guys. But you have an opportunity to get a generational talent, stuff is bound to happen."

Kuzma added, "I thought that we made some growth over the two years together. Obviously, a lot of people didn't necessarily see it because of injuries -- BI, Zo not really playing a lot of games over the past two years. But when we played together and we were on the court together, good things happened."

USA notes: Marcus Smart did not practice and is out the rest of the week due to a left thigh strain. The Boston Celtics guard will be evaluated next week when Team USA is in Los Angeles. ... Memphis power forward Jaren Jackson Jr., who is on the men's select team, had his right leg looked at toward the end of practice. "I thought I did something but I didn't," Jackson said. "I just had to check it with [the team physician]. It's fine."

PHOENIX -- Relief pitcher Greg Holland, a three-time All-Star who led the National League in saves in 2017 with 41, was designated for assignment Wednesday by the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Holland, in his ninth season and first with the Diamondbacks, is 1-2 with a 4.54 earned run average in 40 games. He has 17 saves in 22 chances but saw his ERA climb from 2.33 at the end of June to its current number.

He has given up at least one earned run in seven of his past 13 appearances.

Holland, 33, lost his closer's job after a blown save on July 26 and is the second D-backs reliever to be designated for assignment this week after Zack Godley on Aug. 5. Holland had 47 saves in 2013 and 46 in 2014 with the Kansas City Royals.

The Diamondbacks reinstated utility player Blake Swihart from the 60-day injured list Wednesday. Godley was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays.

BALTIMORE -- The Bronx Bombers are doing their best bombing in Baltimore.

In the city where Francis Scott Key penned "The Star-Spangled Banner," the New York Yankees went deep five times against the Orioles in Wednesday's 14-2 win at Camden Yards. That gave them 52 homers against Baltimore and broke the record for most by a team against a single opponent in one major league season.

The record-breaking 49th homer came in the top of the fifth inning, when Gio Urshela sent a 97 mph sinker from reliever Miguel Castro over the left-center-field fence for a two-run shot.

Urshela also homered in the sixth. Catcher Kyle Higashioka went deep in the fourth and ninth innings, and left fielder Cameron Maybin launched a 436-foot solo blast in the ninth.

Higashioka's fourth-inning homer off starter John Means tied the MLB record held by the 1956 Yankees, who hit 48 homers against the Kansas City Athletics. The Yankees have 11 players with multihomer games against Baltimore this season, breaking the record of 10 set by San Francisco against the Dodgers in 1958.

"We have guys up and down the lineup who can hit the ball, so it is no surprise to see what we did,'' Higashioka said. "It was nice to be a part of it.''

The Yankees finished 10-0 at Camden Yards. According to Elias Sports Bureau, it's the 14th time in MLB history that a team has gone 10-0 or better on the road against an opponent and the first time since the 2002 Red Sox went 10-0 at the Rays.

They have four games remaining against the Orioles this season, all next week in New York.

"Everyone has a lot of confidence, I think, in one another," manager Aaron Boone said. "That's the sense you get because we've proven throughout the year they can get it done throughout the lineup. Whether it's been the bottom of the order, the middle, the top, it seems like it's come from a lot of different places. They take a lot of pride in making it difficult on the pitchers and passing the baton and they have a lot of confidence in the guys in front of them and behind them."

On Monday, the Yankees set a record by hitting their 32nd home run at Camden this season. That was the highest total by a visiting team at any stadium in one season, breaking the record of 29 held by the 1957 Braves (at Cincinnati's former Crosley Field).

They've only added to it since. Leading the barrage for New York is infielder Gleyber Torres, who has launched 10 of his 23 homers this season against the Birds. Nine of catcher Gary Sanchez's 24 home runs have been at Baltimore's expense, and more than half of outfielder Clint Frazier's 11 dingers (six) have come against the O's.

The Yankees slugged 17 home runs in their three-game sweep of the Orioles, hitting five on Monday and six on Tuesday. According to ESPN Stats & Information, they're the second team in MLB history to hit five or more homers in three straight games, joining the 1977 Red Sox, who did so against the Yankees at Fenway Park.

Going yard against Baltimore is nothing new. Orioles hurlers have surrendered 234 home runs, most in the majors and 34 more than the next-closest club (Seattle). They are on pace to finish the season with 332 homers allowed, which would shatter the record of 258 currently held by the 2016 Cincinnati Reds.

The Yankees have hit 203 home runs this season, second in baseball behind the Minnesota Twins (224).

Overall, MLB home run numbers have spiked this season. Through Tuesday's games, 3.6% of all plate appearances had resulted in a home run, up from 3.0% last season. In 2017, MLB hitters collectively posted a 3.3% home run rate that was the highest in league history.

BALTIMORE -- Orioles slugger Chris Davis had to be restrained during a clash in the dugout with manager Brandon Hyde in Wednesday night's 14-2 loss to the New York Yankees.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Davis was lifted for pinch hitter Jace Peterson. Shortly afterward, the MASN broadcast showed a clip of Davis getting into a heated exchange with Hyde, an interaction between the top and bottom halves of the inning.

"It was just a disagreement that we had in the dugout," Hyde said. "What was said and what we talked about, I'm not going to get into. We're going to keep it in house, and it's private. It's something that happens sometimes and frustration boils over a little bit when we're not playing our best baseball the last couple of games. Unfortunately, I'm embarrassed it was caught on camera and people had to see it, but sometimes those things happen."

Hyde said he took the veteran first baseman out of the game.

"We had words and I took him out of the game," the manager said. "Me and Chris have a good relationship and these things happen in competitive environments and it's something that'll pass and we'll get through it, but it's unfortunate that it happened in the dugout."

Although the exact nature of Wednesday's incident is unclear, it appeared as though Hyde, whose team was losing 6-1 at the time, said something to Davis before heading down into the tunnel toward the home clubhouse.

The 33-year-old first baseman quickly became agitated and moved toward his skipper, but was restrained by veteran outfielder Mark Trumbo and hitting coach Don Long.

"There was obviously a little bit of a disagreement," Trumbo said. "I think this game was particularly tough. Almost nothing went our way. So I think that everybody was pretty frustrated, and those things, they tend to happen. Hopefully they don't happen in front of everybody, but in this case, it kind of did. Not ideal, but not that big a deal. This stuff happens. It rarely gets talked about because you don't see it all the time, but tensions are always high in the big leagues. Tonight, just a little bit too much, I think."

The Orioles' loss Wednesday gave the Yankees a three-game sweep. Baltimore pitchers gave up five home runs in the finale, and surrendered a total of 16 homers during the three-game series. The Orioles have now served up 52 long balls to the Yankees this year, setting a major league record for most home runs allowed to one opponent in a season.

Before getting swept by their division rivals, the last-place Orioles had played better recently, posting a 17-16 record over their previous 33 games. Including the sweep, the O's are now 2-13 against New York, and have lost all 10 of their matchups at Camden Yards this season.

Davis, who signed a seven-year, $161 million free-agent contract with the Orioles in January 2016, has struggled mightily at the plate. Entering play Wednesday, the former home run champ was hitting .183 and had struck out 110 times in 246 at-bats.

Earlier this year, he set a major league record by going hitless in 54 consecutive at-bats, a streak that dated to September of last season.

As his struggles have continued, the left-handed swinger has been used more and more sparingly against southpaw starters. He was in the lineup against Yankees left-hander James Paxton on Wednesday, just his 12th start against a lefty this season. In his only plate appearance before getting pulled, he struck out swinging.

Peterson, who replaced Davis, is also a left-handed hitter.

Hyde is in his first season as a big league manager. The 45-year-old former Cubs bench coach has guided the Orioles to a 38-76 record, the second-worst mark in the majors behind the Detroit Tigers (33-78).

British number two Dan Evans pushed Spanish great Rafael Nadal in their first meeting before going down in straight sets at the Rogers Cup.

Evans, 29, lost 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 in a second-round match disrupted by rain in Montreal.

Qualifier Evans could not convert two set points before losing the tight opener, Nadal upping his game at the start of the second to take control.

Top seed and champion Nadal faces Guido Pella in the last 16.

Frenchman Richard Gasquet upset Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 7-6 (7-4) while Croatian 14th seed Marin Cilic was a 6-3 6-4 winner over Australia's John Millman and Wimbledon semi-finalist Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain beat Argentina's Diego Schwartzman 6-2 7-5.

Nadal overcomes slow start to progress

Eighteen-time Grand Slam winner Nadal - playing his first match since losing to Roger Federer in the Wimbledon semi-finals last month - struggled to cope with the Briton's aggressive and accurate approach play in an entertaining first set.

Evans has moved to the cusp of the world's top 50 after an impressive year which has seen him rise from 190th to 53rd, proving again in Montreal against Nadal he has the ability to cause problems for the top players.

The Briton made the ideal start by breaking 33-year-old Nadal's serve in the first game of the match and holding to love in the next, before the world number two fought back to 3-3 and go on to claim two set points at 5-4.

Evans boldly employed serve and volley tactics to save both and, after a rain delay lasting almost half an hour, dominated the early part of the tie-break to earn two set points.

But Nadal responded with a forehand winner and a smart second serve to save both, carrying on his momentum to claim the opener.

Nadal had lost only one of his previous 75 matches after winning the first set - against Nick Kyrgios in Acapulco this year - and it looked ominous when he broke Evans in the first game of the second set.

A second, lengthier rain delay disrupted the Spaniard as he allowed Evans to break back in the first game after the resumption, but a break of the Briton's next service game proved decisive as Nadal wrapped up victory.

Karakal kit bag and £250 grant lures clubs to sign up to WSD
By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor

A big shout out to England Squash for launching a significant and successful development project in partnership with Karakal to encourage clubs to sign up to attract new members on World Squash Day.

In what is set to be the most successful World Squash Day to date in England, Karakal will provide kit bags featuring 18 rackets to the first 100 England Squash-affiliated clubs who sign up to become a delivery partner and stage a World Squash Day event.

At the time of writing, more than 70 clubs had already signed up to join the fun and promote the sport on World Squash Day.

Mark Williams, Director of Sport at England Squash said: “World Squash Day serves as a springboard to inspire the nation to pick up a racket and we are thrilled to have Karakal’s support to grow the game in England.

“This year, we’ve set the ambitious target of engaging 5,000 players through World Squash Day events in England and we are encouraging clubs to sign up and help showcase our fantastic sport to their local communities.

“Delivery partners will receive a host of incentives including the Karakal kit bag and a £250 grant to grow their programmes.”

Steve Gallienne, Global Sales and Marketing Manager at Karakal, said: “We are delighted to partner with England Squash for World Squash Day and encourage clubs to stage events. For Karakal to play a part in inspiring new players to get on court is extremely rewarding and aligned to our strategy to increase participation.”

As co-ordinator of the World Squash Day campaign, it is heartening to see a national federation like England Squash support WSD in such a solid and committed fashion in partnership with a major brand like Karakal.

Our global goals are to encourage clubs to invite their local communities to step inside on World Squash Day to see what a fantastic sport we have… and to try it out.

We aim to promote the well-documented health and well-being benefits associated with squash.

In short, we want squash to be the sport that provides community health benefits to fight epidemics such as childhood obesity.

It requires clubs to think outside the box and plan strategic partnerships with health providers to make an impact on local communities.

We aim to provide more information on this aspect of the project during the build-up to World Squash Day, which is now just over nine weeks away.

Find out more about World Squash Day at englandsquash.com/worldsquashday

Clubs worldwide can download a Toolkit from the World Squash Day website containing a multitude of ideas for events on the big day: www.worldsquashday.net

For further information on the England Squash scheme, please contact Donna Helmer at [email protected] 

Clubs in the UK can order World Squash Day shirts from Pete Smith at Recognition Sports. Please email [email protected]