The Houston Rockets are progressing on several fronts in talks to trade guard Victor Oladipo, and there's strong confidence they'll execute a deal ahead of Thursday's NBA trade deadline, sources told ESPN.

The Rockets are increasingly comfortable with the offers on Oladipo in the marketplace, which include young players and first-round pick combinations that the franchise believes are suitable returns to make a deal, sources said.

Oladipo, who can become a free agent this summer, has a longer-term interest in joining the Miami Heat, which is well known around the league, sources said. Miami has the salary-cap space to sign Oladipo as a free agent this summer, which has inspired a reluctance on the Heat's part to make a premium offer to Houston for a trade, sources said.

Oladipo has a mutual interest in the New York Knicks too, sources said, and New York -- armed also with summer cap space -- has been reluctant to make an aggressive trade offer on Oladipo too, sources said.

Several teams bidding on Oladipo are without the salary-cap space to sign him this summer, but they could try to retain him using his Bird rights after acquiring him in a deadline deal.

There has remained some reluctance in the marketplace on Oladipo based on his recent history of injury and missed games. He suffered a ruptured quad injury in January 2019, but has shown flashes of his old self in performances with Indiana and Houston this season. Oladipo has averaged 21.2 points in 20 games with the Rockets, although his efficiency has been suboptimal.

He arrived in Houston as part of a four-team trade that delivered All-NBA guard James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets. The Rockets offered Oladipo a two-year, $45 million contract -- the maximum offer that they were available to make during the season under the collective bargaining agreement -- but Oladipo declined it, sources said.

Houston ended a 20-game losing streak Monday night with a victory over Toronto, and is in a mode of gathering young players and pick assets as it moves toward a rebuild.

Oladipo, 28, is in the final season of a four-year, $85 million contract.

Milwaukee Brewers reliever Josh Hader expects to remain more of a traditional ninth-inning closer this season after occasionally working multiple innings earlier in his career.

"The closer rule is a good fit, especially with the bullpen arms we have,'' Hader, a two-time All-Star, said Tuesday from the Brewers' spring training site in Phoenix.

Brewers manager Craig Counsell said Hader will fill largely the same role as last season. Hader acknowledged that working multiple innings can be a grind and said he appreciated the more defined ninth-inning assignment last season.

"The ups and downs are what's more taxing than anything, especially the amount of pitches,'' Hader said. "That's something that wears and tears on you over the course of the season.''

Hader, who turns 27 on April 7, pitched just 19 innings in 21 games last season. The left-hander had worked 81⅓ innings in 55 games in 2018 and 75⅔ innings over 61 games in 2019.

Milwaukee's bullpen depth should afford the Brewers the opportunity to enable Hader to stick to the ninth inning.

Devin Williams returns after allowing just one earned run and striking out 53 batters in 27 innings last season to earn NL Rookie of the Year honors. The Brewers also have Eric Yardley (2-0, 1.54 ERA last season), Brent Suter (2-0, 3.13), Drew Rasmussen (21 strikeouts in 15⅓ innings), Justin Topa (0-1, 2.35) and Brad Boxberger (1-0, 3.00 with Miami) among others.

"The closer rule is a good fit, especially with the bullpen arms we have,'' Hader said. "Having Devin being able to fill the gap in the seventh and eighth, and the other guys as well. There's a lot of options out there to bridge the gap.''

Hader went 1-2 with an NL-leading 13 saves and a career-high 3.79 ERA that was impacted by two bad outings in a pandemic-shortened season. He walked five and gave up two runs in one-third of an inning Aug. 29 against Pittsburgh, and he allowed four runs in one inning Sept. 12 against the Chicago Cubs. He yielded just two earned runs in his other 17⅔ innings of work.

He did that while starting to diversify his approach, something Hader is continuing this year. Hader has been willing to add new pitches to complement his fastball, and Counsell believes that decision should enable the left-hander to remain effective for a longer period.

"This is a real credit to Josh and seeing the big picture, long-term, and really understanding himself very well, understanding matchups in the game and giving himself options,'' Counsell said. "That's really what he's trying to do.''

TORONTO -- Blue Jays reliever Kirby Yates is expected to have season-ending surgery on his right elbow, general manager Ross Atkins said Tuesday.

The Blue Jays also reported two other injuries: Outfielder George Springer will miss the next four or five days because of a strained oblique muscle and left-hander Robbie Ray will skip at least one spring training start after slipping on a staircase and bruising his elbow.

Yates was expected to be Toronto's closer after signing a $5.5 million, one-year deal in the offseason. On Monday, the team said Yates would miss several weeks because of a strained muscle in his forearm.

Yates last pitched Saturday against Philadelphia, striking out two in one scoreless inning. It was his second outing of the spring and his first since March 11.

The 33-year-old Yates was an All-Star with San Diego in 2019, when he posted a 1.19 ERA and led the NL with 41 saves. He pitched in six games for the Padres last season and had a 12.46 ERA before surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow.

Springer signed a $150 million, six-year deal in the offseason. The 2017 World Series MVP with Houston, he was scratched from a game on March 9 because of tightness in his abdominal muscles.

Springer had an MRI after experiencing persistent tightness, but Atkins said Toronto's prime acquisition still feels good and isn't expected to be out of action for long.

"The MRI revealed an injury that he is able to play baseball with," Atkins said. "He is extremely motivated and driven to be ready for Opening Day."

Atkins said Ray was carrying his child down the stairs at his rental home when he slipped and fell. Ray's child was uninjured in the fall, Atkins said.

"Part of the injury was making sure that that was the priority," Atkins said.

The lefty is expected to throw a bullpen session in the next few days.

Right-hander Nate Pearson, who has missed time because of a strained right groin, has resumed throwing and feels good, Atkins said, while right-hander Thomas Hatch, who left a spring outing last week because of a sore elbow, "is not going to be missing significant time."

London Marathon race director believes GB runners can dominate the world if their talent has world-class support structures

Great Britain can become a global “powerhouse of endurance running”, according to Hugh Brasher, the race director of the Virgin Money London Marathon.

“I don’t think anyone’s doing it particularly well in the world,” he suggests, “so why can’t we do it incredibly well?”

Brasher was speaking shortly after the announcement that London Marathon will be funding 29 of Britain’s leading distance runners in 2021 such as European indoor medallists Amy-Eloise Markovc and Verity Ockenden, plus the in-form Marc Scott and nine of the competitors in Friday’s Olympic trials, as part of its ongoing commitment to supporting domestic distance running.

This adds to the London Marathon’s support of talent hubs for student athletes in Birmingham and Leeds together with it’s long-term backing of parkrun, the Daily Mile for primary school children and of course the Virgin Money Giving Mini London Marathon for teenagers.

“It’s an ongoing development,” says Brasher says of the support packages. “Sport moves, strategies need to move and you need to do things differently and this is another piece of the jigsaw.

“You’re trying to create a pathway of support to make Great Britain the powerhouse of endurance running. It’s quite a big statement but it’s what Great Britain used to be so why can’t it be that now?”

British endurance running certainly seems to be heading in the right direction. At 800m the current generation includes Elliot Giles, Dan Rowden, Jamie Webb, Jemma Reekie and prodigious Keely Hodgkinson and Max Burgin. In the 1500m there is Laura Muir and Laura Weightman, Jake Wightman, Josh Kerr and Charlie Grice, among others.

Over 5000m and 10,000m there is the US-based Marc Scott and Sam Atkin, together with Andy Butchart, Eilish McColgan, Melissa Courtney-Bryant and of course Mo Farah.

The marathon, meanwhile, has seen Charlie Purdue and Jess Piasecki run 2:25 in the last couple of years, whereas there is also Steph Twell, Jonny Mellor and a number of others who will be racing the Olympic trials this week at Kew Gardens.

In fact, of the 29 runners who the London Marathon have committed to supporting this year, the following are in the Olympic trials on Friday – Mo Aadan, Natasha Cockram, Charlotte Arter, Ben Connor, Steph Davis, Sarah Inglis, Tish Jones, Lily Partridge and Chris Thompson.

READ MORE: London Marathon funding boost for British runners

The London Marathon support ranges from young children through to runners in the twilight of their career. Brasher says it’s not unusual for teenage middle-distance runners to eventually excel in the marathon and he says he never thought the young Farah would end up running a marathon.

“Eliud Kipchoge started out winning a world title on the track too back in 2003,” he adds. “You don’t just ‘become’ a marathon runner.

“You’ve got to look long term,” he continues. “Athletics is not something you’re suddenly good at overnight. Some people say some athletes ‘come out of nowhere’ but they don’t.”

Brasher says Olympic and world medals aren’t the be-all and end-all either. “British Athletics talk a lot about the podium at the worlds and Olympics but there are some pretty important podiums in between that such as the Commonwealths and Europeans,” he says.

“Athletes need support and encouragement and not everyone makes that immediate jump to be right up there at global level. We’re trying to support athletes who are at the transition stage.”

He adds: “Eilish McColgan was supported through this programme,” for example. “She nearly broke her mum’s 5000m Scottish record recently and she could be a phenomenal marathon runner in future.”

Andy Murray has withdrawn from the Miami Open because of a groin problem.

The world 118 said that he "struggled to walk" after developing pain while sleeping on Friday.

The three-time major winner was ranked second in the world when he last competed in Miami in 2016.

"I had no issues while training, felt fine, did some gym work Friday, no problem," Murray told the Miami Herald.

"I woke up about three in the morning, felt pain in the groin, not on the side I had my surgery, got out of bed I struggled quite a bit to walk."

Earlier this month, the Scot was knocked out in the second round of the Rotterdam Open by world number eight Andrey Rublev having also received a wildcard for that event.

When things are not going well for a team, players are constantly reminding each other that they are not as bad as everyone says they are.

The truth is you are usually somewhere in the middle. Even in games where it looks like you have lost comprehensively, there are always a few moments where you think 'if only this one thing had happened', the entire game could have been a different story.

That is where Ireland were before last weekend, and against England on Saturday they got the fine margins right.

They imposed themselves on the game early with a couple of turnovers, and each one injected another layer of confidence into the side.

What we saw was a complete performance, in which a lot of the things they had worked on came together.

They had good turnovers, they were solid at the set-piece and they took their chances.

Even before Keith Earls' try there were a few early moments that made you think Ireland were really going to turn up.

England had a maul after 15 minutes and made a little bit of ground, but Ireland's line speed off that was outstanding. George Ford got the ball and was swallowed up by Robbie Henshaw as Ireland won a turnover. In that moment, you saw the intent they had arrived with.

There were big moments at every turn, and a few of them spoke of a bigger picture. In the second half Ireland won a penalty off an England scrum, and Tadhg Furlong's celebration told its own story.

England opted for the scrum there because they felt they could get the penalty and get themselves some field position at a time where they badly needed territory.

For Ireland to turn that around and kick three more points to take their lead to 26-6. You knew in that moment they were not going to get beaten.

People will look back and say England were not at the races, but there were a few moments where they threatened to get back into it and that for me was one of the big positives.

Every time England threatened a purple patch, Ireland slammed the door shut.

Outstanding Sexton drowns out the noise

Saturday was one of those games where you could pick any Ireland player and point out two or three things they did really well.

One player who deserves a special mention, because he is quick to find himself in the spotlight when Ireland underperform, is Johnny Sexton.

I have never seen a player with a camera on him so much during a game, because he is the person that fans and pundits love to scrutinise above all others.

Being an international captain takes a lot of getting used to.

The more games you play, the more comfortable you become in the role. You get comfortable trusting the people around you, and that takes some time because they aren't people you see every day.

The next squad will have some different faces, and as a captain you have to become comfortable in that unpredictable environment.

Johnny has been outstanding. Even against Wales when they went down to 14 men it was his composure that helped them stay in the game, and it was that composure that was missing in key moments of the France match from which he was absent.

In the last three games he has been exceptional. When Ireland give him options, and the pack give him front foot ball, there are very few better in the world.

People continually talk about his age, but surely it is better to judge him on what he is doing week in, week out.

Judge his captaincy on what he is delivering and on what the team do, like bounce back from two losses in a row.

There were times even on Saturday when the camera panned to him and he was shaking his head.

What people don't consider is that as a player, you do not notice that.

You only become aware of it if you go on social media and people have turned it into a talking point.

His team-mates know him. They know he does not mean it as a personal insult and they know that if he is unhappy it means something is not 100% right with the team, because that is what he strives for.

Ireland can ride the wave into the autumn

Results and performances dictate the mood in camp, so naturally there will have been a few big swings over the course of a championship.

After the France defeat, Ireland's experienced players will have reminded the team that they were only one big win away from building some momentum.

There is a perspective that you try to keep the whole time, and part of that is remembering that people's opinions change very quickly.

They arrived into Saturday's game in a very similar position to the one we found ourselves in on the last day of the 2017 tournament.

We lost to Scotland in the opening game, clawed our way back into the championship only to lose to Wales in the penultimate week, and everyone was saying we were an awful team.

England were going for back-to-back Grand Slams in the final game at the Aviva, but we beat them fairly well.

That was the catalyst for what we achieved in 2018. After the 2017 Six Nations ended, a lot of the boys went to the Lions then we had a really good autumn.

That is where Ireland will want to be now, they will want to capture the spirit and momentum from Saturday's win and ride the wave to the autumn internationals.

Of course they would happily have a game next week in order to keep the momentum going, but the beauty of having a long wait now is that they don't need to pour water on the flames of this victory.

They can allow the confidence and emotion to flow through, because the next time this group of players meet again will be in the autumn.

By then the euphoria will have died down and they will have been able to fully reflect on what went right in that game, and how they replicate it going forward.

Whereas for England, it will seem like an eternity until they meet again.

Former England captain Chris Robshaw says a desire to expand his horizons was behind his move from Harlequins to San Diego Legion in the United States.

"I've lived in south-west London kind of area my whole life, having been at Harlequins a boy and a man," he told BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast. "I just wanted a new life experience really."

Robshaw said his mum initially thought he had switched to American Football.

"She asked 'are you going over there to play English rugby or American rugby?'" Robshaw explained.

"I asked her what she meant and she says 'you know, with all the pads and the helmets'.

"I had to tell her that's a completely different sport!"

Robshaw is one of a number of overseas stars who have moved to the United States, with Australian pair Matt Giteau and Adam Ashley-Cooper playing for the newly- formed LA Giltinis.

His team lost their opening match of the season this weekend, to a Rugby United New York team that included former England team-mate Ben Foden.

"There's some fantastic players in the league," said Robshaw.

"They have some tremendous athletes, some powerful people but a lot of players pick rugby up as a second sport when they might not quite make it as an NFL player or a basketball player.

"So maybe the intricacies of the skills aren't quite there but it's definitely growing."

'It's something that will live with us'

Robshaw is yet to make his debut for San Diego Legion as he serves a suspension from rugby after being among the 13 Barbarians players who broke Covid-19 protocols before their game against England in October.

Robshaw was among a group who visited pubs in contravention of agreements they had signed and national lockdown measures.

The match against England was subsequently cancelled on player safety grounds.

"There were very poor choices by myself and the other 12 people involved unfortunately," Robshaw said.

"It's something that will live with us and through this whole year it's definitely been a dampener on my time.

"To start the season over here being banned is not ideal at all from anyone's point of view.

"We've got our punishments and fines and [we're] trying to do the community work and get back out there and try and enjoy that side of the game again."

England Women will play France in an exhibition fixture after the end of this year's shortened Six Nations as more tournament details are revealed.

They travel to Padova to play Italy on 10 April before a final home play-off to decide the standings on 24 April.

England will travel to Lille to take on France in an extra fixture on 30 April. All four matches will be shown on BBC.

France, the 2018 Six Nations champions, finished second behind Grand Slam-winning England in the 2020 tournament.

England took a narrow 19-13 victory from their trip to Pau in the opening match of the 2020 campaign.

The 2021 edition of the competition is being played in a new format after being pushed back in the calendar because of concerns keeping teams' mainly amateur players Covid secure.

Each team will play two pool games, one home and one away, before matches to decide placings on the final weekend.

"The Six Nations is always a special competition and we're all looking forward to getting underway," said coach Simon Middleton.

"It's great that the games will once again be shown on the BBC and this time, we want to make sure everyone can enjoy watching from home."

England Women fixtures:

Saturday 3 April: England v Scotland, Castle Park, Doncaster. (15:00 BST) -Live on BBC iPlayer

Saturday 10 April: Italy v England (14:00 BST) Stadio Plebiscito, Padova - Live on BBC iPlayer

Saturday 24 April England v TBC (14:00 BST) (Venue TBC) - Live on BBC Two

Friday 30 April: France v England (20:00 BST) Villeneuve d'Ascq, Lille - Live on BBC iPlayer

PORT ROYAL, Pa. – Dylan Cisney didn’t win from the pole Saturday at Port Royal Speedway, but he continued his string of solid runs to start the new year.

Cisney placed fourth at his hometown track, which gives him four-straight finishes inside the top-eight and three-straight top-five finishes to kick start the season.

“It’s definitely a good start,” Cisney said last weekend at Williams Grove Speedway. “We’ll keep taking these top fives.”

The 28-year-old from Port Royal seemed poised to win his first feature at the half-mile since July 13, but fell behind early to Justin Peck. He will, however, take another top-five and continue toward his main objective of being more consistent in bigger events.

This year, Cisney will branch out and run races in Scott Cowman’s No. 2 sprint car, with the Knoxville Nationals atop that list. Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprint Series races are on the docket as well.

Cowman is a long-time car owner from Wisconsin and has maintained a connection with Cisney through the years.

Last year, Cisney finished fourth in the Port Royal track points and plans to run for the championship again this year. On top of those efforts, he wants to race more at Williams Grove Speedway and beef up his schedule.

“If you run only one night a week, you only get 20 races a year,” Cisney said. “You know, you can hit a stretch where you struggle for six, seven, or eight races. That used to be almost half our year. Now, you can run some of these three-day weekends and figure out a lot of stuff.”

Some of Cisney’s finest moments of 2020 came in big races toward the end of the year. He finished third in Port Royal’s Tuscarora 50, sandwiched between the track’s winningest driver, Anthony Macri, and the country’s winningest driver, Kyle Larson.

A few weeks later, Cisney finished third in Selinsgrove Speedway’s $20,000-to-win Jim Nace Memorial National Open.

A three-race weekend is ahead for Cisney, who looks to bolster his consistency to start the new year.

“We kind of showed toward the end of last year we just needed to get better for the bigger races,” Cisney said. “We can work consistency through the week here, then you’ll be in a lot better shape as the bigger shows come around. That’s kind of our goal: to be a contender in these big races.”

– Alan Krimes scored his 22nd career victory at Lincoln Speedway on Saturday, passing Don Kreitz Jr. for 16th all-time in wins at the track.

He’ll look to boost his win total at Williams Grove Speedway this year, too. The five-time winner at the Mechanicsburg half-mile will be driving Stewart Smith’s No. 27 full-time at the famed track.

– A loaded 410 sprint car slate is on tap this weekend. Williams Grove Speedway is back Friday at 7:30 p.m. with its 25-lap, $5,000-to-win show.

Port Royal Speedway hosts the first time trial show of the year Saturday at 4 p.m. with a 25-lap, $4,000-to-win event. On Saturday at 6 p.m., Lincoln Speedway hosts its fifth race weekend of the year with a 30-lap, $4,000-to-win show.

Then, on Sunday at 2 p.m., Selinsgrove Speedway caps it all off with its first 410 show of the year in a 25-lap, $4,000-to-win event.

– Chase Dietz, in his first full year driving John Trone’s historic No. 39, finished second at Lincoln Speedway on Saturday.

Luck hasn’t been there for Dietz, but speed has been five weeks into the new year.

Last week, Dietz suffered a mechanical failure at Lincoln while leading. A day later, at Williams Grove Speedway, another car failure foiled an eighth-place run. The weekend before, Dietz finished seventh at Lincoln.

– Port Royal Speedway’s opening day winner Lance Dewease had an early exit Saturday in the track’s 25-lap main event.

The National Sprint Car Hall of Famer started 10th and wrecked out on lap one in a battle for eighth with Pat Cannon on the backstretch. Dewease was credited with a 24th-place finish.

His next scheduled race is April 16 when the All Star Circuit of Champions invade Williams Grove Speedway.

– George Hobaugh finished eighth after racing his way through the B-Main Saturday at Port Royal Speedway.

2021 Central PA sprint car points through seven of 110 races

1 13 Justin Peck 107 points
2 48 Danny Dietrich -4
3 51 Freddie Rahmer -13
T4 87 Alan Krimes -18
T4 5 Dylan Cisney -18
6 72 Tim Shaffer -21
7 69K Lance Dewease -27
8 39M Anthony Macri -36
T9 99M Kyle Moody -37
T9 55 Hunter Schuerenberg -37

Williams Grove Speedway points through one of 32 races

1 51 Freddie Rahmer 300 points
2 13 Justin Peck -30
3 69K Lance Dewease -50
4 1W Brandon Rahmer -60
5 5 Dylan Cisney -70
6 0 Rick Lafferty -80
7 55 Hunter Schuerenberg -90
8 1X Chad Trout -100
9 12 Brent Shearer -110
10 48 Danny Dietrich -120

Port Royal Speedway points through two of 26 races

T1 39M Anthony Macri 645 points
T1 5 Dylan Cisney 645 points
T3 13 Justin Peck -5
T3 1Z Logan Wagner -5
T5 45 Jeff Halligan -30
T5 12 Blane Heimbach -30
7 24 Kerry Madsen -45
8 55 Mike Wagner -60
9 69K Lance Dewease -75
T10 40 George Hobaugh -85
T10 33 Gerard McIntyre -85

Lincoln Speedway points through four of 30 races

1 72 Tim Shaffer 900 points
2 48 Danny Dietrich -40
3 99M Kyle Moody -50
4 87 Alan Krimes -60
5 8D Billy Dietrich -80
6 75 Tyler Ross -140
T7 5E Tim Wagaman -145
T7 21 Matt Campbell -145
9 69 Tim Glatfelter -150
10 39 Chase Dietz -185