The Sports Report: The Super Bowl could return to L.A. soon

Howdy, I’m your host, Iliana Limón Romero, filling for Houston Mitchell, who is probably plotting his trip to Arizona for spring training. Let’s get right to the news.

From Sam Farmer: With Super Bowl LVII in the books, the Arizona host committee was able to exhale Monday morning and passed the football — figuratively and literally — to its counterparts from Las Vegas, where next year’s game will take place.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who only hours earlier had presented the Lombardi Trophy to the Kansas City Chiefs, meant to make reference to Las Vegas in his introductory comments but accidentally said “Los Angeles” before laughing and quickly correcting himself.

Since he raised the topic, when is L.A. getting its next Super Bowl?

Although Goodell isn’t saying, the most likely window for a second Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium is at the end of the 2025 or ’26 season, meaning the games would be played in early 2026 or ’27.

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MORE SUPER BOWL NEWS:

— Come-from-behind win by the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII is most-watched telecast in six years

— Plaschke: ‘MVPat’ Mahomes is now chasing Tom Brady for GOAT title after gutsy Super Bowl win

— Emotional Travis Kelce grateful to be with brother Jason ‘at the mountaintop’

— Jalen Hurts motivated by his Super Bowl heartbreak: ‘My only direction is to rise’

— Kadarius Toney makes Super Bowl history with ‘surreal’ late-game heroics

LAKERS

Blazers guard Damian Lillard, center, drives to the basket between Lakers forward Anthony Davis, left, and guard Dennis Schroder, right, in Portland, Ore., Monday.

(Steve Dykes / Associated Press)

From Broderick Turner: LeBron James worked out hard after the Lakers completed their shoot-around Monday morning, battling in the post, running to the three-point arc, throwing down dunks, hitting pull-up jumpers, his sweat all over the Moda Center court.

But James didn’t play Monday night against the Portland Trail Blazers, missing his third consecutive game because of left ankle soreness. With the game Wednesday against New Orleans at Crypto.com Arena serving as the Lakers’ last before the All-Star break, coach Darvin Ham was asked whether James would play that night.

“Yeah,” Ham said, “in all likelihood he should be available then.”

James has not played since he broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA career scoring record last Tuesday night in a loss to Oklahoma City.

The Lakers, who have six new players for whom they traded in the last 3½ weeks, could have used James against a Trail Blazers team that put them in a 27-point hole behind sizzling All-Star point guard Damian Lillard.

The Lakers had no answers for Lillard, who had 40 points, six rebounds and five assists in pushing Portland to a 127-115 victory.

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DODGERS

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts watches as players warm up for a game against the Rockies on July 29 in Denver.

(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)

From Jack Harris: Dave Roberts brushed off the suggestion with a laugh.

No, the Dodgers manager won’t be making another World Series guarantee for his team this season, he said when asked at the club’s FanFest event last weekend.

“I’m not going to do that,” Roberts smirked, almost a year removed from making a similar declaration last spring.

“But again,” Roberts added, “I still expect to win the World Series. I do. And I don’t think that there’s anybody that’s a part of our organization or fan base that doesn’t feel that same way.”

Indeed, the Dodgers’ aim for 2023 is no different from years past. Their window as championship contenders remains firmly swung open.

But after an offseason marked by extensive roster turnover and understated acquisitions, there are new obstacles littering their pathway to October — fraught with as many potential pitfalls as they’ve seemingly faced in years.

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CLIPPERS

Eric Gordon, while playing for the Houston Rockets, drives for a layup against Lakers forward Anthony Davis during a game in 2021.

(ASSOCIATED PRESS)

From Andrew Greif: For Eric Gordon, Monday’s setting was as familiar as the assignment.

The 34-year-old guard practiced for the first time since he was traded last week from Houston to the Clippers inside the same Playa Vista practice facility he called home during three seasons to start his NBA career, from 2008 to 2011.

It was the first opportunity to learn teammates’ preferences and the Clippers’ specific terminology. Any trade requires a learning curve.

His ultimate responsibilities are already understood from his time complementing ball-dominant superstars such as James Harden and Chris Paul in Houston. In a season in which the championship ambitions hinge on the Clippers’ duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, it’s Gordon’s job — and those of guard Bones Hyland and backup center Mason Plumlee, who also practiced Monday for the first time since their trades here — to help the stars, and thus the team as a whole, play their best.

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KINGS

Kings right wing Adrian Kempe shoots and scores in front of Sabres defenseman Owen Power during the second period in Los Angeles Monday.

(Alex Gallardo / Associated Press)

From the Associated Press: Adrian Kempe scored for the third straight game, Viktor Arvidsson had a goal and two assists, and the Kings beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Monday night.

Sean Walker and Matt Roy also scored to help the Kings get their second straight win after the All-Star break and bye week. Phillip Danault had three assists and Pheonix Copley made 27 saves.

Dylan Cozens and Peyton Krebs scored, and Craig Anderson gave up five goals on 28 shots for the Sabres, who have dropped four straight games after a five-game win streak.

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THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1934 — The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the NHL All-Stars 7-3. The game is played as a benefit for fomer Toronto player Ace Bailey. Bailey suffers a skull fracture earlier in the season from a hit by Boston’s Eddie Shore.

1936 — Maribel Vinson wins her eighth U.S. figure skating singles championship and Robin Lee wins his second consecutive men’s title.

1951 — Sugar Ray Robinson wins the middleweight title with a technical knockout in the 13th round over Jake LaMotta in Chicago.

1953 — Bill Chambers of William & Mary grabs 51 rebounds in a 105-84 victory over Virginia.

1966 — Philadelphia’s Wilt Chamberlain scores 41 points in a 149-123 win over Detroit to become the NBA’s all-time scoring leader, passing Bob Pettit (20,880 points).

1975 — Julius Erving of the New York Nets scores 63 points in a 176-166 quadruple overtime loss to the San Diego Conquistadors. Erving sets an ABA record by shooting 25-for-46 from the field and the 342 points are an ABA record.

1986 — Wayne Gretzky gets seven assists for the third time in his career as the Edmonton Oilers beat the Quebec Nordiques 8-2. Gretzky doesn’t score a goal for a career-high ninth straight game, but ties his NHL record with the seven assists.

1988 — Bobby Allison outduels his 26-year-old son Davey to win the Daytona 500 and becomes the first 50-year-old to win NASCAR’s premier event.

1990 — Mario Lemieux of the Pittsburgh Penguins ends his 46-game scoring streak, the second-longest in NHL history, leaving after two scoreless periods of a 4-3 overtime victory over the New York Rangers.

1992 — Bonnie Blair becomes the first American woman in 40 years to win two gold medals in the Winter Olympics when she takes the 1,000-meter speed skating event.

2004 — Anaheim’s Sergei Fedorov is the first Russian-born player to collect 1,000 points with an assist on Keith Carney’s goal in the second period of the Ducks’ 2-1 win over Vancouver.

2005 — Savannah State is 0-for-the-season, becoming the second NCAA Division I school in a half-century to go through an entire season without a win, losing to Florida A&M 49-44 to finish 0-28.

2010 — In Vancouver, British Columbia, an American breaks through the Nordic combined barrier, winning the first Olympic medal in the sport dominated by Europeans. Jason Lamy Chappuis of France overtakes American Johnny Spillane on the final straightaway for the gold medal, winning four-tenths of a second ahead of Spillane.

2010 — The Eastern Conference edges the West 141-139 in the NBA All-Star game before the largest crowd ever to watch a basketball game. A crowd of 108,713 at Cowboys Stadium watches Dwyane Wade score 28 points and take MVP honors before Dallas native Chris Bosh makes the winning free throws with 5.0 seconds left.

2010 — Sailing’s America’s Cup, once again, belongs to America after Larry Ellison’s space-age trimaran easily speeds ahead of two-time defending champion Alinghi of Switzerland to complete a two-race sweep in the 33rd America’s Cup.

2015 — Mikaela Shiffrin becomes the third woman to win back-to-back slalom titles at world championships. She finishes in a combined time of 1:38.48, edging Frida Hansdotter of Sweden by 0.34 seconds.

2016 — The first NBA All-Star Game outside the U.S. is the highest-scoring ever. Kobe Bryant says his NBA All-Star Game goodbye as the West wins 196-173 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. Russell Westbrook scores 31 points in his second straight All-Star MVP performance. Paul George finishes with 41 for the East.

2018 — Snowboarder Shaun White wins America’s 100th Winter Olympic gold medal, throwing down a spectacular final run in the men’s halfpipe at the Pyeongchang Games. The United States is the second country to win 100 winter golds, trailing Norway, which started the day with 121.

2021 — 63rd Daytona 500: Michael McDowell navigates through fiery, final-lap pileup to claim his first career NASCAR Cup Series win in his 14th season; race delayed by rain for 6 hours after huge Lap 14 crash

Compiled by the Associated Press

And finally

American Sign Language performer Justina Miles became a breakout Super Bowl star after her interpretation of Rihanna’s halftime show on Sunday. Watch her memorable performance.

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