Tim Howard has experienced the highs and lows of goalkeeping, but it's the lows that stick in the memory. "You have to go to some dark places as a goalkeeper," the former United States and Manchester United No. 1 told ESPN FC.

Howard was feted by President Barack Obama and became a national hero after an incredible display during the World Cup defeat against Belgium in 2014, but his failure to hold on to Benni McCarthy's 90th-minute free kick during a Champions League second-round tie with FC Porto 10 years earlier gifted Costinha a decisive goal that knocked United out of the competition and convinced Sir Alex Ferguson that Howard was not up to the job of the club's first-choice keeper.

"In order to be successful in England, you've got to be great for the better part of five to 10 years," Howard said. "I had a great season at Manchester United, and then phew, I didn't see the field for two years, so it's not about having one or two good games."

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Being a goalkeeper is a thankless task, one that requires a certain kind of individual to don the gloves and pull on the No. 1 jersey. You can make 10 incredible saves -- "worldies" in goalkeeper parlance -- and then allow one to slip through your grasp and into the back of the net. Guess what gets remembered?

"In my experience of football, goalkeepers are more invested than outfield players in the psychological side [of the game]. And they need to be," said sports psychologist Dan Abrahams, who has worked with Premier League players and clubs. "They are individuals operating in a team setting, and there are times when their world can cave in if they make a calamitous mistake."

David James made high-profile mistakes during his early days at Liverpool, and once he was nicknamed "Calamity James," it stuck for the remainder of his career. You can only imagine how former France No. 1 Dominique Dropsy -- yes, that's his real name -- would have been treated in today's ferocious, unforgiving world of social media if he accidentally dropped the ball onto the toes of an opposition forward.

David De Gea, Manchester United's No. 1 keeper, knows all about the downside of the position these days. Rated by many as the best in the world, he has had a nightmare run of mistakes between the posts, dating to his unconvincing performances for Spain at last year's World Cup. His error against Chelsea on April 28 proved to be a key moment in United's late-season slide.

Loris Karius has had it even worse than De Gea. The German keeper made two huge mistakes that led directly to goals in Liverpool's 3-1 Champions League final defeat against Real Madrid in Kiev, Ukraine, last year, and even though it transpired that he was suffering from a concussion following a collision with Sergio Ramos earlier in the game, he became the target of merciless criticism.

Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool defended Karius in public at the time, but he hasn't played for the club since: He was shipped out on loan to Besiktas in Turkey, where his battle to rebuild his confidence has been marred by further mistakes. An error on his debut against Bursaspor in September resulted in Besiktas being held to a 1-1 draw, and he made another high-profile mistake to concede a goal during a Europa League defeat against Malmo in October.

But Karius' time in Turkey hit its lowest ebb in March, when after being jeered by fans following a goal conceded against Konyaspor, Besiktas coach Senol Gunes claimed publicly that "something is wrong" with the German.

Mark Bosnich, the former United, Aston Villa and Australia goalkeeper, saw Karius make those errors against Real, and it triggered memories of his young days at Old Trafford from 1989 to 1991 (he had a second stint at the club from 1999 to 2001). "What happened to Karius, it had been coming." Bosnich told ESPN FC. "He had made mistakes in games running up to the final, and you could see he was having a tough time. His manager, Klopp, should have helped him and taken him out of the firing line before that game and allowed him to rebuild his confidence and go again.

"When I was a kid at United, I saw the same happen to Jim Leighton, who was an experienced No. 1. He had a bad run, his confidence dropped, but Alex Ferguson played him in the FA Cup final, and he let in three and was dropped for the replay. Jim never really recovered from that, but sometimes a manager has to spot the problems before a big mistake happens. They have a responsibility to act before it can be too late.

"Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has that decision to make with De Gea," Bosnich said of the United manager. "I believe De Gea can come through this period, but at some point, the manager has to make a decision when a keeper is struggling."

Karius and De Gea have both been in the eye of the storm, but when you are the last line of defence, you need to be able to handle that, right?

"I always wanted to be a goalkeeper as a kid, but I also knew that you had to take the rough with the smooth," Bosnich said. "As a keeper, you have to have that mindset. Whenever I made a mistake, I would just apologise to my teammates in the dressing room and move on. That's how I was.

"My best game for United was against Palmeiras in the Intercontinental Trophy, when we became world champions in 1999, but I was the same after that. No big deal. Move on."

Not all goalkeepers are as mentally tough as Bosnich, however. The Australia international was an extrovert, criticised more for being too confident than for being riddled with self-doubt, while others have sunk after high-profile mistakes.

The England careers of the likes of Rob Green and Scott Carson ended before they properly began, thanks to costly errors in big games for their country. Scrutiny can be intense, especially in an era of all-angle replays, VAR and super-slo-mo analysis, but Howard said staying strong is crucial for every keeper who has, quite literally, dropped the ball. "You have to prepare for some dark days," he said. "You have to be strong, block out the media, the fans and even some of your own teammates when they're looking across the dressing room at you and you know they have no confidence in you.

"It's never-ending. Your self-belief can never waver. Confidence ebbs and flows, but self-belief is not something that ebbs and flows with performances. You have to always believe in yourself.

"That's where I think a lot of goalkeepers get it wrong. I wasn't stupid. I could look in the mirror and say, 'By the way, you haven't been playing very well,' but I never discounted the fact that I belonged there or that I could play."

Ben Foster also experienced the unforgiving spotlight that comes with playing in goal for Manchester United. He, too, fell afoul of Ferguson after one mistake too many. Massimo Taibi and World Cup winner Fabien Barthez went the same way as Leighton, Bosnich, Howard and Foster at Man United. Now Watford's No. 1, Foster said it has taken until his 30s for him to develop the strength of mind to deal with the pitfalls of his profession.

"United was definitely the wrong place at the wrong time for me," Foster said, recalling his time as a young keeper making his way at Old Trafford. "I wasn't equipped mentally to be able to deal with being at United at that time.

"Young goalkeepers now, they get taught how to play football, with training for this and that, but they don't get taught how to deal with stuff mentally. Personally, I think the mental side of the game is 50 percent, and the coaching and football side of it is 50 percent, but the mental side is completely neglected."

The influence of psychologists such as Abrahams points to football learning that goalkeepers need specific help, countering Foster's assertion that the area is overlooked. Abrahams said that coaching a goalkeeper to deal with adversity is the key.

"There are tools and techniques to help keepers cope with making mistakes," Abrahams said. "It's about staying focused, using key trigger words to themselves to control the situation, projecting positive body language and, crucially, not dwelling on the mistake."

Foster agrees, insisting that "if you ever think [about a mistake], that's when you're going to start getting problems."

How do you rebuild a keeper's confidence on Monday morning, after a costly mistake, when he heads out to train?

"Some keepers will want to focus on the mistake and work on it. Others will just want normality and repetition of what they always do," said Ant White, a member of Bournemouth's goalkeeping coach team. "But they have to know their identity, what makes them a top goalkeeper and remain focused on their strengths.

"A mistake could be a 1-in-5,000 incident, so you also make sure they don't forget the other 4,999 good moments."

Only De Gea truly knows whether his energy and focus are being drained by his run of mistakes. The same applies to Karius: Does he have nightmares about those two errors in Kiev? Ultimately, all players grapple with mistakes they've made, but it's different for a goalkeeper. They are exposed, in every sense.

"I almost don't see myself as a footballer, you know?" Foster said. "I just try to get in the way of a ball that's going in the back of a net. That's what it comes down to at the end of the day. But you're on your own.

"As a goalie, you're on your own, and you've got a deal with it on your own."

Sussex 422 (Jordan 166, Brown 156) and 339 for 4 dec (Salt 122, van Zyl, 81*, Brown 60*) drew with Northamptonshire 368 (Vasconcelos 83, Buck 51) and 288 for 6 (Rossington 69*, Cobb 68, Hamza 4-51)

It has been a tough start to the season for Northamptonshire, who had a chastening time in the 50-overs matches and came back to four-day cricket to be beaten effectively in three by Lancashire last week. Apart from the first session of the first day, they were behind in this game throughout, so to emerge with a draw will feel like a triumph of sorts.

Sussex led by 346 overnight but did not declare, adding 47 more in a four-over flurry that left a target for the home side of 394 in a round 90 overs minimum, which was a hefty demand but, with batsmen well attuned these days to scoring quickly, not so forbidding that Northamptonshire would not fancy themselves a little bit.

But the balance shifted away from them in two major lurches during the afternoon session.

After the early loss of Ricardo Vasconcelos, who nicked a textbook away-swinger from Mir Hamza into the hands of Philip Salt at third slip, Josh Cobb and Ben Curran had built a fairly sturdy platform by lunch, one down for 104.

Successful fourth-innings targets on the scale of this one rarely happen; indeed, only once in Northamptonshire's history, on this ground in 2010, when Stephen Peters made what was then a career-best 183 not out and a target of 394 to beat Middlesex was reached.

As the players re-emerged into the afternoon sun, there might have been a few home supporters wondering if something similar could happen, but such imaginings were beginning to seem more fanciful when Hamza's post-lunch spell claimed wickets in its second and fourth overs.

These setbacks might have raised fewer groans had they not been somewhat self-inflicted. Curran, who had played with careful application for his 29 before lunch as Cobb led the scoring, undid all that with an airy waft outside off stump, offering Ben Brown a routine catch. Cobb then succumbed to an awful misjudgment, shouldering arms to a ball he plainly believed would pass by only for it to swing back and knock down his exposed off stump.

Cobb made 62 and 68 in the game, which was not bad given that he was in the side only because of Alex Wakely's domestic mishap on the first evening. He knows it could have been more both times.

Much seemed to rest now on Temba Bavuma, in the second match of his stay here. He did not make the impact he would have liked on his debut against Lancashire at Old Trafford last week, where Northamptonshire were soundly beaten, but here was a situation in which to make a name for himself. As those before him had demonstrated, there were no demons in the pitch, even after four days of sunshine, and there were runs to be had quickly against a Sussex attack lacking the injured Ollie Robinson, in which only Hamza had been consistently tight.

An experienced batsman now, with 36 Tests for South Africa on his CV since his historic debut in 2014, Bavuma's first scoring shot was a gorgeous cover drive for four off Hamza. Rob Keogh, his new partner after Cobb's demise, has been in good form. Perhaps there was still room for a little optimism among the fourth-day stalwarts.

It was pretty much gone, though, after one over accounted for both of them midway through the session. Unlike Hamza, Chris Jordan had been impressive only occasionally (in his bowling, at any rate) in this match, but came up with something fast and straight for Keogh, who looked to work it to leg but was beaten for pace as the ball thudded into his front pad.

The real calamity came three balls later. Bavuma played Jordan back down the pitch. There was not much pace on the shot but Bavuma somehow saw a single in it, even though Adam Rossington, the new batsman, plainly did not.

The stand-in skipper anchored his bat behind the crease but Bavuma was halfway down before he knew he had to turn back. By then, David Wiese had swooped in from mid-on and had the ball in his hands, with enough time to pitch his throw on a long-hop length and watch it follow a gentle arc into the off stump with the South African still out of his ground.

At 162 for 5, the chance to win the game had gone. Frustratingly, Northamptonshire had scored quickly enough to be well up with the required rate, but the number in the wickets column was a clear message that they needed to change their focus to survival. All afternoon, anyone dozing off in the sunshine was liable to be disturbed regularly by the crash of ball against advertising boards. The five overs before tea, though, allowed for uninterrupted slumber.

Thirty-seven overs remained in the final session, with 182 more runs needed. Too many, it seemed, although there was enough of a nagging doubt in Brown's mind, it appeared, that he was never quite committed to all-out attack.

Hamza was the most likely matchwinner. His third spell, immediately after tea, yielded a wicket with his first ball when late movement did for Luke Procter, snaffled by the diving Brown, but he gave way again after only four overs and did not return until the new ball became available with the race virtually run. No one else possessed his consistent threat.

Rossington and Brett Hutton, the other concussion sub, ploughed on with a resolution that will have pleased their head coach, David Ripley, who saw too little at Old Trafford. It had been a good contest, one which Sussex, having been in such a strong position after Jordan and Brown's colossal performance on the first day had swung the game so heavily in their favour, might feel they should have made more of.

South Africa women 127 for 1 (Lee 75*, de Klerk 37*) beat Pakistan women 125 for 5 (Dar 28, Ismail 1-16) by nine wickets

A collective bowling performance followed by opener Lizelle Lee's third fifty-plus score in four T20Is helped South Africa women clinch the five-match series 3-2 against Pakistan women in Benoni. After limiting Pakistan to 125 for 5, Lee and nineteen-year-old Nadine de Klerk put on an unbroken century stand for the second wicket to usher the hosts home.

After being inserted, Pakistan lost Umaima Sohail to Shabnim Ismail in the fourth over and meandered to 30 for 1 in the Powerplay. Javeria Khan (20), captain Bismah Maroof (23), Nida Dar (28) and Aliya Riaz (26) all moved into the twenties, but none could find a gear high enough to hurt South Africa. The hosts used six bowlers, with only Masabata Klaas going wicketless. She was also the only frontline bowler to concede over eight runs an over. Ismail was the most economical of the lot, ending with 1 for 16 in her four overs.

Although Pakistan hit 19 off their last two overs, they ended with only 125 for 5. The target appeared much slimmer when Lee got going with a brace of boundaries off Riaz in the second over of the chase. Two overs later, he opening partner Tazmin Brits was dismissed by Nida Dar, but Lee moved to a 40-ball fifty and cut loose soon after, hitting Riaz for three fours in a row in the 15th over. Then, with South Africa needing five off five overs, she smashed a six off Dar to secure victory. Lee was well supported by de Klerk who contributed 37 in an unbroken 100-run stand that came at a run-rate of nearly nine.

While Lee was named Player of the Match, Dar was adjudged the Player of the Series for backing up her 192 runs with five wickets. Lee rounded off the series as the top scorer, making one run more than Dar's tally. Nobody took more wickets than Dar - Ismail and Moseline Daniels also claimed five wickets each.

Virat Kohli, India's captain, says it is a great compliment to have been name-checked by Jofra Archer as the wicket that England's newest fast-bowling recruit most wants to claim in the forthcoming World Cup, and believes that he has an "X Factor" that justifies his fast-tracking into England's 15-man squad for the tournament.

However, Kohli also suggested that the batting line-up that has lifted England to No.1 in the world rankings is "obsessed" with becoming the first team to post 500 runs in a single ODI innings, and warned that they would struggle to play their full-throttle expansive game when the pressure ramps up at the sharp end of the tournament.

Sitting next to England's captain, Eoin Morgan, at the World Cup captains press conference in East London, Kohli took his chance to fire the first shots in the psychological battle between the two teams that most pundits believe are the likeliest to contest the World Cup final at Lord's on July 14.

India's captain has recent experience of World Cup glory, having played a role in the 2011 victory over Sri Lanka in Mumbai, whereas England have never won the tournament in 11 events dating back to 1975, and have not won a knock-out match since reaching the final in 1992.

And while England's batsmen were in ominous form going into this year's event, having become the first ODI side in history to put up 340-plus totals in four consecutive matches, en route to a 4-0 win over Pakistan, Kohli hinted that life would not be quite as simple for Morgan's big-hitters when there's a trophy at stake, as they discovered in 2017 when losing to Pakistan in a low-scoring Champions Trophy semi-final in Cardiff.

"They [England] seem to be obsessed with getting to 500 before anyone else," Kohli said. "They smash it from ball one and for the full 50 overs.

"It could be pretty high-scoring, but 260/270 is going to be as difficult to get as chasing 370, 380 in a World Cup."

The World Cup's history bears out Kohli's warning. Only twice has a total more than 300 been posted from the semi-finals stage onwards - although it was Australia who twice achieved the feat against India, in the final in 2003 (359 for 2) and the semi-final in Sydney in 2015 (328 for 7).

"I don't see too much high-scoring in the later half of the tournament," Kohli added. "Some teams might get on a roll, but you'll see 250 defended as well as because of the kind of pressure that comes with it.

"When you get closer to the knockout phases, that is going to bring greater pressure and no-one is going to go gung-ho from ball one. Generally teams will find a way, but I see pressure playing a massive role."

For that reason, England may well be grateful for the added firepower that Archer adds to their bowling ranks, in the wake of a quietly impressive first bow in international cricket against Ireland and Pakistan earlier this month.

Speaking on Sky Sports in the wake of his naming in the final 15, Archer had said that he wanted to get Kohli's wicket above all others - not least because, in their four IPL clashes to date, his Rajasthan Royals team-mate Shreyas Gopal had bagged the big one before he could get him in his sights.

"I'd quite like to get Virat out, because I wasn't able to get him in the IPL because I think a leggie [Gopal] got him in every game he played," he said.

"Did he say that?" asked Kohli at the captain's event. "That's news to me, news to Morgs as well. I don't really focus on these things.

"I take a lot of pride in performing well for the team and making a big impact on each game I play so, if Jofra said that, it's a big compliment as he himself is a world-class bowler.

It is high praise coming from a player of Kohli's calibre, who will go into the World Cup as the No.1 ranked batsman in both Test and ODI cricket, following a stellar run of form that has included nine 50-over hundreds since the start of 2018.

And though their head-to-heads at the IPL have been limited, Kohli has seen enough of Archer's talents with the white ball to know what he will offer to England's bowling attack.

"The way he has come through at the IPL over the last couple of years, I have seen him and he's played all round the world and done well, so there's a good reason why he's been fast-tracked into playing for England in a tournament like the World Cup.

"I think he's going to be the X-factor because he has all the skillsets and he's very different from anyone else. He can generate a lot of pace which can be intimidating and you don't really expect that from his run-up. He's just a great athlete and I'm sure the England team will be delighted to have him and he will be exciting to watch at the World Cup. I personally will be watching his bowling because whatever I've seen of him he is really impressive."

Wives and family members of Pakistan's players at the World Cup will not be permitted to stay with them for the duration of the tournament in England. According to a new PCB policy, any cricketer's family members who wish to travel along with the player will have to make their own arrangements throughout the event.

ESPNcricinfo understands that the decision is intended to keep players focused on the task at hand, without the distraction of families around them. Only Haris Sohail has been allowed special dispensation on personal grounds. The players' wives and families were allowed to stay with them during the bilateral series against England, but the team manager has since informed the players about the new policy.

This is a departure from standard operating procedure. Previously, Pakistan's players insisted on having their wives during series abroad, and they were allowed to share hotel rooms. Pakistan are set to begin their campaign against West Indies in Nottingham on May 31 to kick off a World Cup that will see them play nine games across seven venues before the semi-finals.

Aaron Finch (Australia)

It's a good question, I think, England have been in great form over the last couple of years and along with India, they've probably been the standout performers. So you'd have to say England are definitely the favourites.

I think it's important that some of our guys have got that World Cup experience and having, I think, six players who have been a part of a winning World Cup will hold us in good stead going forward, hopefully. But it's a different tournament and, once you get out and start playing, the pressure takes over. So it'll be a great tournament.

Eoin Morgan (England)

I've no idea. I don't think there's anybody that's head and shoulders above everybody else. In a 10-team World Cup, the ten best teams in the world, it's going to be an extraordinarily competitive tournament. And I think there will be some quality cricket played. We're really looking forward to playing.

Of course being at home will be a factor. It's called home advantage for a reason. We get to spend a lot of time in our own beds, we'll see a lot of our families, and get to prepare like we have done for a number of years now. But England's a great place to come and play cricket, if you ask any of these guys or any of their players, they love coming here and playing.

Virat Kohli (India)

We've had both our warm-up games televised already so there's much pressure on the team wherever we play.

The way I look at it, there's always going to be a huge fan-base for us anywhere we play in the world. But I have to agree with Aaron, I think England is probably - in their conditions - the most strong side in this tournament, but I also agree with Morgs, that all ten teams are so well balanced and so strong, and the fact that this is a tournament where we have to play everyone once, makes it all the more challenging. I think that's going to be the best thing about this tournament, I see this as probably one of the most competitive World Cups that people are going to see

Sarfaraz Ahmed (Pakistan)

As Morgan and Kohli said, all the teams are really balanced, and all are good teams, so I wish them all the very best and I think people will watch great cricket here.

Definitely if you've seen the past results of Pakistan teams in England - I'm talking about the 1992 Test series, or the 1999 World Cup or 2017 [Champions Trophy] - Pakistan has been very good in England. So we are very confident, in'shallah, we will do very well.

Dimuth Karunaratne (Sri Lanka)

We have played good cricket and have good experience [of playing] in England as well, so we will try to do well, and do our best. We came early to get some confidence in the conditions, we are in good shape and will do our best.

Kane Williamson (New Zealand)

There are a few guys who were in the last World Cup, which is great, so there is some experience there. But naturally, with four years in between tournaments, there are a lot of new players as well. I guess there's been a lot of talk around rankings, favourites, underdogs, but I think the thing that stands out is how balanced all the teams are and, when it comes to the day, anything can happen, which makes the way for a really exciting competition.

Faf du Plessis (South Africa)

If you look at international cricket right around the circuit, you'll see very close competitive series home and away. It's not just more home teams that are dominating. So, like the other captains are saying, I think all of us are really excited to try this new tournament, with everyone playing everyone once. I think it's a great tournament.

Mashrafe Mortaza (Bangladesh)

We have a great team mix, probably as good as we have ever had. We have some young players coming through and we are very excited about them.

Jason Holder (West Indies)

To play every side is great for us. We worked hard with the qualifiers to get here, that means it is the top 10 in the world, we want to play them all and give ourselves a shot. The team that wins will definitely deserve it.

Gulbadin Naib (Afghanistan)

We have peace in Afghanistan now and cricket is a huge part of that. We are very happy and hopefully that can help us produce good performances. We're excited to be here in front of the crowds. It's the top ten teams in the world and we are proud to be representing Afghanistan.

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- New York Jets coach Adam Gase, whose relationship with Le'Veon Bell already is under a microscope, insisted Thursday that he's "excited" to have the star running back on the team.

Gase dismissed speculation he's interested in trading Bell before the season.

"That's ridiculous," Gase said. "That's the first I've heard of that."

The Gase-Bell pairing became an issue last week when the team fired general manager Mike Maccagnan, who lasted only four months with Gase. Sources said Gase objected to the Bell signing because of the steep price tag -- a four-year, $52.5 million contract.

In his first news conference since the front-office shake-up, which some believe was the result of a power struggle between Gase and Maccagnan, Gase praised Bell as a player, but hinted he wasn't a fan of paying that much for him in free agency.

"Whether or not we disagreed on anything financially, that's a completely different story than the person or the player," Gase said. "That's where a lot of this gets misconstrued. Le'Veon Bell is a great player. He's a good person."

Yup ✊? Let's get it Coach ✈️ https://t.co/1lZHScntjz

— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) May 23, 2019

Gase was asked if the Jets overpaid for Bell.

"No, the contract was what it was," he said. "Everybody can criticize contracts all you want, but he's here. I'm excited he's here. I think the players are excited he's here. I think the coaches are.

"When you get a chance to coach a great player, a guy who has done things nobody else has done in the league, we're excited for that opportunity. I'm excited to get him in the offense so I can start figuring out what else can we do with him, and what he hasn't done."

Bell has skipped the majority of the voluntary workouts, including the first three OTA workouts. Gase said he's in "constant communication" with Bell via text and that Bell sends him his workout videos, which he posts on social media.

"All that stuff you get on Instagram, I get it first," Gase said.

The Jets already have paid $11 million to Bell, so the idea of trading him before the season makes little sense, especially since the team would incur a massive cap hit. But that didn't stop speculation from spreading in recent days.

Asked point-blank if they will trade the former Pittsburgh Steelers star, Gase said, "No."

Gase also shot down the notion that he wasn't keen on middle linebacker C.J. Mosley's record-setting, five-year, $85 million deal in free agency.

"We did everything we could to get him," Gase said. "I think I took a pay cut. Whatever we had to do to get him, that's what we were going to do."

Gase was on the defensive, reiterating that he had no role in the ownership's decision to fire Maccagnan. Sources said there was a rift between the two men, and Gase admitted there were "disagreements on a few things, but there was no personal rift."

Instead of giving them a season to work out their differences, CEO Christopher Johnson made the decision to fire Maccagnan after having empowered him to hire Gase, spend unprecedented money in free agency and run the draft.

Now they're in the early stages of a GM search. Gase, who has the title of interim GM, confirmed he will be involved in the process. He downplayed the notion he will pick the next GM, saying it will be Johnson's call.

"I don't really hang out with yes men, so if it's somebody I already know, it's probably not going to be somebody who is a yes man," Gase said.

The new GM will have final say on the roster, as Maccagnan did. Gase, who controlled the roster in Miami, said he's fine with the Jets' power structure. He said "a group of us" will present their ideas on the search to Johnson and then will begin interviewing candidates.

"There's a mold of what some teams are looking for in a GM," Gase said. "He's looking for something a little bit different."

PARIS -- Rafael Nadal will start his campaign for a record-extending 12th title at the French Open against a qualifier. And if he makes it to the second round of the clay-court Grand Slam, another qualifier will be waiting.

The defending champion was handed what looked like quite an easy draw Thursday at Stade Roland Garros, where the Spanish player attended the ceremony and said he was happy with his form.

Nadal won his first title of the season last week at the Italian Open, where he looked close to his best after some uncharacteristic struggles on clay.

"It was an important title for me," Nadal said. "I played very well throughout the tournament, I'm very happy to find myself in this situation."

In the women's draw, Simona Halep will open the defense of her title against Ajla Tomljanovic. Serena Williams was drawn into the top half of the draw and will take on Vitalia Diatchenko in the first round.

Roger Federer, in his first French Open match since 2015, will face Lorenzo Sonego of Italy and top-ranked Novak Djokovic will begin his run against Hubert Hurkacz.

The tournament starts on Sunday.

MIAMI -- Phoenix Suns big man Richaun Holmes was arrested for misdemeanor possession of cannabis after a Miami-area traffic stop.

Twenty-five-year-old Holmes was arrested Tuesday night along with former Brooklyn Nets forward James Webb III after authorities say the found a recently used marijuana joint inside their vehicle.

Both men posted bond soon after being booked into a Miami jail.

Holmes became an unrestricted free agent this summer and averaged 8.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game this past season.

He's the second Suns player to be arrested in South Florida this month after swingman Josh Jackson was detained when police say he refused to leave a music festival VIP area he had entered without a pass.

It wasn't immediately known whether either man has a lawyer.

Kevin Durant is unlikely to play at the start of the NBA Finals as he continues his recovery from a strained right calf, the Golden State Warriors announced Thursday.

In a release, the Warriors said Durant still has not been cleared for on-court activities but added there is still hope he plays at some point in the series.

DeMarcus Cousins also could return from his torn left quad during the Finals, but the team said "the exact date is to be determined and depends on his progress."

The next update on the players' status is planned for Wednesday. The NBA Finals begin next Thursday.

Durant has not played since suffering the injury during Game 5 of the conference semifinals on May 8. Cousins has been out since April 15 after playing in the first two games of the playoffs.

Without both, the Warriors swept the Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference finals to make their fifth straight Finals.