Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker and Gregg Popovich are all one step closer to basketball immortality.

The three international greats — Gasol, Nowitzki and Parker — were among the list of Class of 2023 finalists unveiled Friday by the Basketball Hall of Fame, putting them on the doorstep of enshrinement this summer. Also on that list: Popovich, the winningest coach in NBA history with the San Antonio Spurs, and Dwyane Wade, part of three championship teams with the Miami Heat.

“It’s really about the journey,” Gasol said. “These type of recognitions, which are an amazing honor, they come along when you do things very, very well for a long time and when you love what you do. I’m just privileged to have played the game for so long, at a high level, with amazing people who taught me so much.”

Also making the finalist cut were four selections from the Women’s Committee — 1990 national player of the year, Olympic champion and world champion Jennifer Azzi; six-time WNBA All-Star and WNBA championship-winning coach Becky Hammon; and longtime coaches Gary Blair and Marian Washington.

Golf

Judge rules PGA Tour can depose Saudi backers of LIV Golf >> A federal judge has ruled the head of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the financial backer of LIV Golf, must sit for depositions and produce documents in LIV Golf’s antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour.

Lawyers for the Public Investment Fund and its governor, Yasir al-Rumayyan, had sought to quash subpoenas claiming sovereign immunity.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan van Keulen ruled late Thursday that PIF’s involvement falls under the commercial activity exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act.

Her decision allows the PGA Tour to seek documents and any communication related to such matters as LIV Golf’s recruiting and negotiating with players, its business plans and its involvement in the new league.

NFL

QB Derek Carr meeting with Jets this weekend >> Free agent quarterback Derek Carr is meeting with the New York Jets this weekend, according to a person familiar with the situation.

The 31-year-old Carr, who spent his first nine NFL seasons with the Raiders, was released by Las Vegas on Tuesday after he declined to waive the no-trade clause in his contract. Las Vegas needed to trade or release him by Wednesday or $40.4 million of his contract over the next two years would have become fully guaranteed.

The Jets are looking for a veteran quarterback to lead their offense after Zach Wilson struggled mightily after being the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft. Carr is a potential replacement and New York is bringing him in for a visit, the person told The Associated Press on Friday on condition of anonymity because the team didn’t announce its plans.

MLB

BAY AREA’s THAMES RETIRES >> Eric Thames’ baseball odyssey, which started at San Jose’s Bellarmine College Prep and took him all over the globe has reached its end.

“The day has finally come,” the 36-year-old Santa Clara native announced this week on Instagram. “In the year of our lord, twenty, twenty-three…HE GONE! I’ve been so blessed over these last 14 years to call baseball my job. The friendships that will last a lifetime, the memories that I’ll never shut up about (and those that I’m sworn to secrecy to take to my grave ).”

Thames played professionally (and homered) in five countries — South Korea, Japan, Canada and Venezuela as well as the U.S. — and played for seven MLB organizations.

Thames was in spring training with the A’s a year ago as a potential replacement at first base for the recently traded Matt Olson, but never made it to Oakland to play for the team he rooted for as a kid. He opened the season in Triple-A but was released after 22 games.

Horse racing

Judge denies Baffert request to reverse Churchill Downs ban >> A federal judge denied Bob Baffert’s request to lift his two-year suspension by Churchill Downs Inc., ruling that the Hall of Fame trainer did not prove its discipline hurt his business and reputation.

Baffert will miss his second consecutive Kentucky Derby, and per a Churchill Downs rule, he has until Feb. 28 to transfer his Derby-eligible horses to other trainers in order for them to possibly run in the May 6 race.

Baffert had sued Churchill Downs following his banishment in June 2021 after a failed postrace drug test by now-deceased colt Medina Spirit, who crossed the finish line first in the 147th Derby. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission ultimately disqualified the colt in February 2022 and suspended Baffert for 90 days for a series of failed tests by his horses.

Soccer

Qatar-based bid for Man United confirmed on deadline day >> A Qatar-based bid for Manchester United was confirmed Friday, with Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani promising to rid the iconic soccer team of debt and return the club to former glories.

Sheikh Jassim is the chairman of QIB, which is one of Qatar’s leading banks, and has submitted a 100% offer to buy out current owners the Glazer family.

While plans to invest in the first team and redevelop Old Trafford will be well received by fans, there is likely to also be opposition after Qatar was heavily criticized for its treatment of migrant workers and human rights record ahead of hosting last year’s World Cup.

Friday was the final day for serious contenders to step forward in the race to buy United.