Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges he profited from rigged poker games and provided sports bettors with non-public information about injuries to stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

Jones, a onetime teammate of James, said little during back-to-back arraignments in federal court in Brooklyn, letting his court-appointed lawyer enter not guilty pleas in a pair of cases stemming from last month’s federal takedown of sprawling gambling operations.

Jones, 49, acknowledged he read both indictments and that he understood the charges and his bail conditions, which include his mother and stepfather putting up their Texas home as collateral for a $200,000 bond that will allow him to remain free pending trial.

Jones was among more than 30 people arrested in the gambling sweep. The others included reputed mobsters and prominent basketball figures, including Trail Blazers head coach and Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and Heat guard Terry Rozier.

Sports bettor Marves Fairley also pleaded not guilty to charges alleging he cashed in on information about injuries to NBA players, including some that prosecutors say Jones provided to him.

Jones and James played together in Cleveland from 2005 to 2008 and he served as an unofficial assistant coach for James’ Los Angeles Lakers during the 2022-2023 season.

According to prosecutors, Jones sold or attempted to sell non-public information to bettors that James was injured and wouldn’t be playing in a Feb. 9, 2023, game against the Milwaukee Bucks. James was ruled out of the game because of a lower body jury, according to prosecutors, and the Lakers lost the game 115-106.

James ready for contact activity

LeBron James is ready for contact basketball activity, and he will be re-evaluated by the Los Angeles Lakers’ team physician in one to two weeks as he prepares to begin his unprecedented 23rd NBA season.

James has yet to play this season or practice with the Lakers after being shut down early in training camp because of sciatica. The next step in his recovery is five-on-five basketball work in practice, but it’s unclear when that could begin because the Lakers are headed out on a five-game road trip.

The Lakers have played remarkably well in James’ absence, stoking fans’ excitement about being a possible contender.

women’s hockey

U.S. beat Canada 4-1 in Rivalry opener

Taylor Heise scored and set up each of Abbey Murphy’s three goals, and the United States women’s national hockey team opened the pre-Olympic Rivalry Series with a 4-1 win over Canada.

Laila Edwards had an assist in her Cleveland homecoming, with her shot from the right point deflected in by Heise midway through the first period. The 21-year-old Edwards is a forward-turned-defenseman from Cleveland Heights, and the first Black female player to skate for Team USA.

Sarah Fillier scored for Canada. Eve Gascon stopped 22 shots in her Canadian national team debut. The four-game series continues in Buffalo, N.Y., on Saturday.

PWHL

Vancouver, seattle get team names

Get ready for a women’s pro hockey Torrent in Seattle and the Goldeneyes in Vancouver, as the PWHL unveiled logos and nicknames for its two expansion franchises.

The designs and names were chosen to reflect each of the two Pacific Northwest markets. The process began in April about the same time the professional women’s league announced it was expanding from six to eight teams for its third season.

The expansion teams will be competing on opening day, with Seattle playing at Vancouver on Nov. 21.

The Torrent nickname and S-shaped logo — with the word Torrent written across — draws from Washington’s powerful rivers and cascading waterways that have carved out the region’s landscape.

The Goldeneyes nickname was inspired by the bird common to northern climates, including Vancouver and British Columbia. The logo features the city and nickname circling a feathery golden eye.

MLB

Padres hire Stammen to first manager job

The San Diego Padres have hired former reliever Craig Stammen to be their manager.

Stammen got a three-year contract to begin his first managerial job at any level of the sport.

The longtime right-handed reliever retired from his playing career with the Padres in August 2023, and he spent the past two seasons as an assistant to the major league coaching staff and the baseball operations department headed by general manager A.J. Preller.

DePodesta back in baseball with Rockies

The Colorado Rockies are hiring Paul DePodesta from the NFL’s Cleveland Browns to run baseball operations. The decision has not been officially announced. DePodesta, who inspired Jonah Hill’s character in the movie “Moneyball,” returns to baseball after nearly 10 years with the Browns. He was named Cleveland’s chief strategy officer in 2016.

BRIEFLY

College men’s basketball: Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh says Luke Fickell will remain as coach “beyond this season” as the Badgers face the realistic possibility of their worst finish in decades, carrying a six-game skid into a Saturday home matchup with No. 24 Washington.

NBA: Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra’s home was destroyed by fire early Thursday, but he plans to coach Miami’s Friday game.

Olympics: Russian skiers have challenged their continuing ban from competitions during the Ukraine war as they try to qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

— From news services