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Some employees within the Phoenix Suns believe majority governor Robert Sarver wasn't the only person responsible for fostering a toxic environment within the organization, according to ESPN's Baxter Holmes.

One source told Holmes that Sarver "created the culture" and other high-ranking team executives "upheld it":

"In interviews with more than two dozen current and former Suns employees, ESPN confirmed specific accounts of alleged misconduct by [team president Jason Rowley] and other Suns executives in the report — and uncovered additional allegations, including verbal abuse of employees, mistreatment of pregnant and postpartum employees, and other instances of retaliation and intimidation."

The NBA commissioned the law firm of Wachtell Lipton to investigate the workplace atmosphere of the Suns after Holmes first published an in-depth report into the matter in November 2021.

The firm found that Sarver "engaged in conduct that clearly violated common workplace standards, as reflected in team and League rules and policies." That included using the N-word on at least five occasions, verbal mistreatment of employees and demonstrating "inequitable conduct toward female employees."

As a result of the inquiry, Sarver was fined $10 million and suspended from all league-related business for one year, a punishment many felt was too light given the severity of the allegations.

Amid continued scrutiny, the 61-year-old announced in September he planned to sell the Suns and the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury.

In general, Sarver was singled out for his behavior, but the Wachtell Lipton report alluded to issues beyond ownership:

"Many witnesses nonetheless expressed the view that Sarver was responsible for the problematic behavior of other employees and the HR department's defects because of the 'tone at the top' he set through his own conduct. This hypothesis is difficult to test, but it warrants mention because so many witnesses advanced it in such consistent terms. Many current and former executives and employees told investigators they believed Sarver's conduct had a trickle-down effect: he behaved poorly toward his direct reports, and those reports in turn felt they had license to mistreat their own reports."

In one example, a female employee told Wachtell Lipton she encountered resistance when trying to get her maternity leave approved. Shortly after returning to work, she was fired. Wachtell Lipton said that "male team executives tried to terminate the female employee while she was on leave" but chose to wait based on advice from a female supervisor.

According to Holmes, Rowley was one of the male executives who wanted to fire the employee while she was on leave.

Wachtell Lipton also cited an "institutional failure" in 2019 after a female employee reported having her buttocks grabbed by a representative of a team sponsor on a work trip. Not only did the Suns fail to take any action against the sponsor representative, despite the female employee reporting the incident, she also had to continue working at events with the representative.

Holmes reported that Rowley, chief revenue officer Dan Costello, general counsel Melissa Goldenberg and Kyle Pottinger, the senior vice president of ticket sales and service, were aware of the allegation.

In a statement to Holmes, the Suns said his reporting had "factual inaccuracies and/or [was] deprived of important context necessary to understand the totality of situations that are complicated and matters of some dispute."

In terms of potential consequences for powerful officials within the organization, Holmes cited one hurdle.

Per the ESPN report, interim governor Sam Garvin doesn't have the authority to unilaterally fire Rowley, Costello or chief financial officer Jim Pitman. Sarver's written approval is needed to make any changes to the roles of CEO, CRO and CFO.

The Suns issued a statement in response to the report:

#Suns statement in reaction to #ESPN report. pic.twitter.com/C0Gq0hjwi8

— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) December 20, 2022

NBA spokesperson Mike Bass told Holmes the league is continuing to look into alleged employee misconduct within the Suns.

"Both the sales process of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury and the review of alleged misconduct by others at the organization are ongoing," he said. "That review will remain an internal personnel matter."

The Green Bay Packers face the Los Angeles Rams on Monday, but they reportedly made a move ahead of the contest at Lambeau Field.

According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the NFC North team released wide receiver Sammy Watkins. The Clemson product will go on waivers as a result.

Green Bay signed Watkins to a one-year deal this offseason as it overhauled the wide receiver position.

Its most notable move was trading Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders, but it also lost Marquez Valdes-Scantling to free agency and drafted Christian Watson in the second round. Watson has emerged in the second half of the season with eight total touchdowns in his last four games.

As for Watkins, he went on injured reserve in September with a hamstring setback and has not been much of a factor all year.

He has just 13 catches for 206 yards and zero touchdowns in nine games, and the Week 2 win over the Chicago Bears before his injury was the only time he went over 47 yards in a single game.

The lack of production comes after the 29-year-old posted career-low numbers across the board in 2021 for the Baltimore Ravens with 27 catches for 394 yards and one touchdown.

Perhaps another team will take a chance on Watkins considering there was a time when he was a dangerous offensive weapon. His best individual season came in 2015 when he tallied 60 catches for 1,047 yards and nine touchdowns as a member of the Buffalo Bills.

Yet he hasn't been able to replicate those totals in subsequent stops on the Los Angeles Rams, Kansas City Chiefs, Ravens and Packers and heads to waivers as the 2022 season approaches the final push ahead of the playoffs.

Purdue remains the No. 1 team in the men's college basketball Associated Press poll, but a busy weekend led to a major shake-up in the Top 10.

There were five games between Top 25 teams on Saturday alone, leading to losses for three of the Top Six teams in the previous rankings.

It leaves Purdue and Connecticut leading the pack heading into Week 7 of the 2022-23 season.

---

AP Poll

1. Purdue

2. Connecticut

3. Houston

4. Kansas

5. Arizona

6. Virginia

7. Texas

8. Tennessee

9. Alabama

10. Arkansas

11. Gonzaga

12. Baylor

13. UCLA

14. Duke

15. Mississippi State

16. Illinois

17. Wisconsin

18. Indiana

19. Kentucky

20. TCU

21. Virginia Tech

22. Miami (Fla.)

23. Auburn

24. Marquette

25. Arizona State

---

A week after Houston dropped out of the No. 1 spot with its first loss, it earned its biggest win with a 69-61 road victory over Virginia.

It was a balanced effort for the Cougars, with all five starters hitting double figures and the team often just outworking the Cavaliers on the court.

CULTURE.#ForTheCity x #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/LflLb7KrlU

— Houston Men's Hoops 🏀 🐾 (@UHCougarMBK) December 17, 2022

It was enough to help Houston climb back up to No. 3 in the poll, while Virginia fell from second to sixth with its first loss of the season.

Alabama dropped from No. 4 to No. 9 after a 100-90 defeat to Gonzaga despite getting 36 points from freshman Brandon Miller. The Crimson Tide have still tested themselves throughout the nonconference schedule, earning two wins over No. 1 teams, and remain in good shape with a 9-2 record.

Gonzaga has been up-and-down this year, but the latest win helped the Bulldogs climb four spots to No. 11 after the final test before conference play.

Arizona is another team on the rise after a 75-70 victory over Tennessee. The Wildcats shot just 5-of-24 from three-point range and didn't get a single bench point, yet they did enough to take down a Top 10 team and end Tennessee's eight-game winning streak.

UCLA also represented the Pac-12 well this week, with ranked wins over Maryland and Kentucky, moving up three spots to No. 13 in the country.

Purdue remains at the top of the poll after cruising to a win over Davidson thanks another strong showing by Zach Edey:

Three things are certain in life: death, taxes, and Zach Edey double-doubles 🔥 @zach_edey

- 29 points
- 9-11 FG
- 16 rebounds https://t.co/xrLKKSyah2

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) December 18, 2022

UConn earned 21 first-place votes (out of 61) after a 22-point road win over Butler, improving to 12-0 on the season.

The schedule quiets down for some teams heading into the holiday season, but conference matchups in the ACC and Big East could still lead to some drama in the coming week.

The Los Angeles Lakers may need to make some moves to be a legitimate playoff threat as they attempt to overcome their slow start to the season and a foot injury to Anthony Davis, but LeBron James made it clear he isn't the one who will be doing the wheeling and dealing.

"Not a question for me," James told reporters when asked if he was worried the front office would hesitate to make a trade with Davis sidelined. "I have no idea. When I'm playing, I show up, prepare, go to work and get my guys ready to go win a basketball game. I play the game. I'm not in the front office, so we'll see. But I'm focused on the game and us trying to win basketball games, especially when I'm out on the floor."

The Lakers escaped Sunday's matchup against the Washington Wizards with a 119-117 win thanks to Thomas Bryant's late basket on a broken play, but they are facing an uphill battle in the coming weeks.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported "Davis is expected to miss at least one month."

The timing is particularly troublesome for Los Angeles, which was just starting to play better basketball after a 2-10 start, in large part because of Davis. It is now 13-16 on the campaign, and Davis is averaging 27.4 points, 12.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game.

Therein lies the predicament the front office will now have to juggle ahead of the Feb. 9 trade deadline.

Any team with James and Davis on it is theoretically a threat to compete for a deep playoff run, so adding via trade may be the path it chooses. However, the Lakers are also in 12th place in the Western Conference standings and could fall even further with Davis out.

This could be shaping up to be something of a lost season, and mortgaging future assets may not be worth it for the organization even though the 37-year-old James will surely be thinking about winning in the present.

Jovan Buha of The Athletic noted "over the past few years, James has been vocal against the notion that he has a significant hand in building his teams' rosters," which could have contributed to his answer when asked about the front office's decision-making process.

Yet much of the discussion still revolves around him, especially since he has a player option for the 2024-25 season and could choose to go elsewhere if he is not pleased with the direction the Lakers are headed.

For now, the Purple and Gold will look to build on Sunday's win and their 3-1 record in the last four games as they hit the road to face the Phoenix Suns on Monday.

Phil Urban, a college basketball player at Post University in Connecticut, was shot and killed Saturday at a New Jersey nature preserve, per Marlene Lenthang of NBC News.

The Mercer County Prosecutor's Office said the shooting is under investigation by the county's homicide task force and the Hopewell Township Police Department.

A preliminary investigation showed Urban had arranged to meet an acquaintance at the Hopewell Valley Nature Preserve and was "was shot at some point during the encounter."

He was found "slumped over" in a car and was transported to a medical center, where he was pronounced dead from a gunshot wound.

"Philip modeled the attributes of leadership, commitment and hard work on the court and in the classroom," Post University CEO and president John L. Hopkins said in a statement. "We hope that his family, friends and those affected by his passing will find strength during this extremely difficult time."

The 20-year-old was in his first year with Post University after joining from the Pennington School in April:

WELCOME…Phil Urban. Phil is a 6’6 skilled wing from Manapalan NJ who can play multiple positions. We are excited about what Phil will add to our team both as a player and person. Welcome to the nest, Phil! #Signed 🦅🏀🟠🟣 @philurban0 @njpanthersboys @TPSBasketball pic.twitter.com/1xLy2UNLuy

— Post University Men’s Basketball (@Post_Eagles_MBB) April 28, 2022

The native of Manalapan, New Jersey, had appeared in four games this season, totaling 10 minutes of playing time.

The Eagles defeated Florida Southern College on Saturday in Lakeland, Florida, but Sunday's scheduled game against Barry University was canceled. The team's next game is Dec. 29 against Assumption University at home in Waterbury, Connecticut.

The Philadelphia Phillies and Texas Rangers will be under the national spotlight during the first week of the 2023 Major League Baseball season.

ESPN announced its Sunday Night Baseball schedule, and the Phillies will travel to face the Rangers for the first broadcast April 2. That means fans will get a first look at the reigning National League champions and a Rangers squad hoping to compete in the American League West.

This will be the 34th straight year for Sunday Night Baseball, and play-by-play announcer Karl Ravech will be joined by David Cone and Eduardo Perez in the booth. ESPN's Buster Olney will also be included in the broadcasts.

That the Phillies will be highlighted comes as no surprise.

They went to the World Series last season behind a daunting lineup that included Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Rhys Hoskins, J.T. Realmuto and Nick Castellanos, among others. They also agreed to an 11-year, $300 million deal with shortstop Trea Turner this offseason, adding even more pop to their offense.

Turner is a World Series champion, two-time All-Star, Silver Slugger and batting title winner who is still in his prime at 29 years old.

As for Texas, it made waves this offseason as well when it brought in pitcher Jacob deGrom on a five-year, $185 million deal with a sixth-year option that could bring the value to $222 million. While deGrom comes with injury risk, he is also one of the best pitchers in the entire league when healthy.

His resume includes two Cy Young awards, four All-Star selections, Rookie of the Year honors and an ERA title.

Philadelphia will be plenty familiar with deGrom if he pitches in the Sunday night game considering he spent the first nine years of his career on the NL East rival New York Mets.

There will be no shortage of star power in that matchup as both teams attempt to get off to an ideal start in the 2023 season.

Errol Spence has no interest in fighting Manny Pacquiao as the all-time great considers a boxing comeback.

"I wouldn't fight him. Larry Holmes is one of the greatest heavyweights. He doesn't get the respect [he deserves]. How he beat Muhammad Ali—he f--ked him up. I think it's because of that," Spence said Monday, per Michael Benson of TalkSPORT.

Spence was originally supposed to fight Pacquiao in August 2021 but had to pull out due to a retinal tear. Pacquiao would instead fight Yordenis Ugas, losing via unanimous decision and announcing his retirement after the bout.

The 44-year-old defeated DK Yoo via unanimous decision in an exhibition earlier this month in his return to the ring. He said he would come out of retirement for matches against Spence or Terrence Crawford.

"Of course I can fight Terrence Crawford or [Errol] Spence. I'm eager to fight with them to test them, to see if they're really a champion," Pacquaio told FightHype. "I've been fighting a lot of boxers at 147, 140, 135, I've been fighting one of the greatest boxers in the world. So, I want to test them to fight with me."

Pacquiao also said he would fight Conor McGregor of Floyd Mayweather if an opportunity presented itself.

Spence clearly has no interest in fighting a diminished Pacquiao, citing Holmes' 1980 pummeling of Ali. Holmes is the only boxer to defeat Ali via stoppage and was the second-to-last fight of Ali's career.

Many felt Ali never should have been allowed in the ring with Holmes in the first place given his declining health at the time.

Some members of the Boston Red Sox front office have questioned the decision-making process of chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, according to Joon Lee of ESPN.

"One front-office official said Bloom's deliberate process toward making moves—asking many people for their input before making a decision—can put the Red Sox in a position to fall behind, reacting to other teams versus setting the market," Lee added.

The reaction comes after the Red Sox missed out on re-signing shortstop Xander Bogaerts, who instead agreed to a 11-year, $280 million deal with the San Diego Padres.

Bogaerts had hoped to return to the Red Sox, but the team's offer was well short of what the Padres eventually gave him.

"There are a couple of regrets," Bloom said of negotiations with Bogaerts.

The 39-year-old still justified his process of involving others.

"I think we have a culture where people can and do express directly to me when they disagree with something," Bloom said. "We have a lot of people in the loop on transactions that we make and we have a lot of really good debate. We have a place where people can share their opinion and have it be heard."

The internal question marks could still be a problem, especially with fans getting agitated after a second last-place finish in the last three years.

The loss of a homegrown talent like Bogaerts is especially disappointing after trading away Mookie Betts in 2020. The centerpiece of that deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Jeter Downs, was designated for assignment last week.

Boston also traded away Andrew Benintendi, while Rafael Devers is set to become a free agent next offseason.

Bloom joined the Red Sox in 2019, just one year removed from a World Series title, but there has been little to show from his three years at the helm.