BOSTON (AP) — Boston Celtics center Nikola Vucevic had surgery to stabilize his broken right ring finger on Saturday and won't be reevaluated for at least three weeks.
Vucevic was injured in the first quarter of Friday night's game against Dallas when Mavericks forward Khris Middleton swiped at the ball. He left the game, which Boston won 120-100 in Jayson Tatum's return from an Achilles tendon injury, and did not return.
The Celtics said on Saturday that Vucevic will be reevaluated in 3-4 weeks.
Vucevic was acquired from the Chicago Bulls last month at the trade deadline to give the Celtics depth at big man. The 35-year-old Montenegrin averaged 10.4 points and 21.7 minutes in 12 games with Boston.
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Boston Celtics center Nikola Vucevic grabs a finger after an apparent injury during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR has indefinitely suspended a member of Michael Jordan’s race team after she allegedly used a golf cart to assault a 77-year-old man at Charlotte Motor Speedway last weekend.
The sanctioning body announced Evanna Daneen Howell’s punishment in its weekly penalty report Wednesday for a “behavioral” incident.
According to Cabarrus County court records, Howell, 35, was arrested Saturday and charged with assaulting Dennis Manchester at the track. Incident details were not immediately available, but court records show Judge Matthew Black found probable cause that the defendant “unlawfully, willfully, and feloniously did assault Dennis Manchester with golf cart used to assault the victim deadly weapon, inflicting serious injury.”
Howell was released on a $125,000 bond following her first appearance Tuesday, court records show. She has retained attorney Harold Cogdell Jr., who did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press for comment.
Officials at 23XI Racing and NASCAR also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Howell lives in Charlotte and is a senior account manager for 23XI Racing, which is co-owned by Jordan and Denny Hamlin. According to her LinkedIn profile, Howell has been with the race team since 2021.
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A flag is raised in honor of the late driver Kyle Busch outside of Charlotte Motor Speedway, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)