Afternoon Edition

October 5, 2026

LeBron James is a Philadelphia 76er, but he’s splitting his time between Philly and New York City. That commute is made easier thanks to a helicopter provided by Fanatics, which LeBron struck a trading card deal with in 2024.

—Colin Salao and Daniel Roberts

First Up

The NHL’s “Hot for Hockey” audiobooks have been removed from Spotify after less than a week, and the league says the campaign is done.
The Rays, one of MLB’s long-running attendance weak spots, have become a hot ticket in the Tampa area.
The NHL’s all-time goals leader, Alex Ovechkin, announced Monday that the 2026–27 season will be his final one, ending a 22-year career.
Legal drama behind the scenes at the WPBL is still alive despite the league’s CEO trying to end the case by firing the board member who brought it.

LeBron’s Fanatics Deal Includes Helicopter Use

Bill Streicher-Imagn Images/TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

LeBron James isn’t paying a dime for his commute to and from Philadelphia to play for the Sixers.

A Fanatics source told Front Office Sports that James has been using the company’s aviation as part of his broader deal with the company. James signed a multiyear trading card partnership with Fanatics in January 2024, while he agreed to a deal with the Sixers in July and will reportedly live in New York City while playing for the team.

He has been seen taking a helicopter with multiple Fanatics logos to and from Philadelphia.

“The deal we signed with Fanatics almost three years ago includes access to their corporate aviation,” a spokesperson for James told FOS. “It’s a feature in many of their deals with their largest athletes and we appreciate their partnership as LeBron splits his time between New York and Philadelphia.”

A one-way chopper from New York City to Philadelphia is about $4,000 to $10,000. It’s not known how much Fanatics’s deal with James is worth.

Flight records show the Fanatics helicopter James has used made a dozen round-trips between Philadelphia and New York in the past week. A one-way trip normally takes about 30 minutes, cutting what is normally about a 90-minute to two-hour drive.

James, who has made nearly $600 million in his 24-year NBA career, signed a two-year, $8 million deal with the Sixers in July. He will earn a career-low $3.87 million this season.

But he’s making it back through several endorsement deals, including with Fanatics and a recent deal with Polymarket that FOS reported last month is worth about $15 million annually.

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ONE BIG FIG

The ‘Romo Effect’

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

$180 million

That’s how much Tony Romo’s 10-year deal with CBS Sports was worth. The contract, which was signed in 2020, became the new benchmark for top NFL color commentators. Romo may now have parted ways with CBS, but his nine years as the network’s No. 1 NFL game analyst changed the sports media game forever.

LOUD AND CLEAR

Booted From ‘Big Noon’

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

“This is something that is a core tenet of his—that I’m a major, major headache.”

—Dave Portnoy on Ohio State head coach Ryan Day, who Portnoy told Front Office Sports he believes was responsible for being removed from Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff.

“When Fox announced the deal, Ohio State objected to it instantly, to the point that Fox executives were in Columbus and were shown a 30- to 45-minute highlight tape of me ripping Ohio State and Ryan Day,” Portnoy said.

The Barstool Sports founder told FOS he had been preparing to head to Columbus for the show when “they told me to stay home because Ohio State had basically said, ‘If Dave’s there, we won’t cooperate in any aspect of the show.’”

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STATUS REPORT

One Up, One Down, Two Push

Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

Brian Flores ⬆ The Vikings defensive coordinator masterminded a stout defensive effort in the team’s 15–10 victory over the Dolphins, the team Flores coached for three years before being fired in acrimonious circumstances. Minnesota improved to 4–0, becoming the first team since 1934 to do so while failing to score an offensive touchdown in two of its games. Flores was fired by Miami in 2022 and later sued the Dolphins and NFL, alleging he was racially discriminated against and that owner Stephen Ross pressured him to tank by offering him $100,000 per loss. The proceedings remain ongoing.

Daniil Medvedev ⬇ The world No. 5 was defaulted from his Beijing semifinal match against Novak Djokovic after striking a spectator with a tennis ball. Medvedev will forfeit the $219,295 in prize money and 200 ranking points he would have earned for the week. That could have significant implications in the race for the Nitto ATP Finals, as Medvedev currently occupies the final spot of the eight-man field and sits just 330 points ahead of Alex de Minaur in the race. Medvedev trailed 7–5, 5–3, 15-all when the incident occurred.

TNT Sports ⬆⬇ Chairman and CEO Luis Silberwasser told staff he will leave the company once the merger between Warner Bros. Discovery, TNT’s parent company, and Paramount is complete. “I am writing to let you know that, with the closing of the Paramount-WBD merger, I will be departing the company as TNT Sports and CBS Sports come together under new leadership,” Silberwasser said, according to CNBC. Under the new company, to be called Skydance, the sports groups will come under the leadership of CBS Sports CEO and president David Berson.

Arizona State men’s hockey ⬆⬇ After more than a month of tumult surrounding the program, ASU opened its season on the road at Lindenwood on Friday. It did so without head coach Greg Powers, who was put on administrative leave last week following the Aug. 20 preseason workout that left defenseman Matthew Mayich on life support. The Sun Devils, who split the pair of games with the Lions, wore yellow ribbons on their helmets with Mayich’s number on them, and they also hung his jersey in the locker room. Despite the season being underway, questions about the future of their coaching staff still loom over the program. ASU has retained an independent investigator to probe the incident.