LOS ANGELES -- After missing 11 straight games with a sore left knee, Los Angeles Lakers point guard DAngelo Russell returned to the starting lineup Sunday in his teams 118-112 loss to the New York Knicks.Russell, who was on a minutes restriction, finished with three points on 1-of-8 shooting in about 17 minutes and said he felt good afterward. He added that hes trying to shake the rust off after being sidelined.I feel like I took the shots I usually take, made the passes I usually make, Russell said. The turnovers were the turnovers I know I could do better at. Its just finding that rhythm.Lakers starting guard Nick Young also returned after missing seven games with a strained calf. Young finished with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting in about 20 minutes.It felt good, Young said, but I got a little winded, felt a little achy, body-wise, but I think Ill be all right.Like Russell, Young also played on a minutes restriction, but Lakers coach Luke Walton said each player will play more in the coming days. The Lakers (10-16) have lost six straight and begin a seven-game road trip Monday in Sacramento.We knew they were on minutes restriction, but it was nice to get them both back on the court, Walton said. I think DAngelo missed some shots that hell normally knock down for us. He was making a bunch of them [Saturday], but obviously game speed is a little different. Nick seemed to look pretty good out there.Russell entered Sunday as the Lakers second-leading scorer (16.1 points per game) and leader in assists (4.8 per game)Russell, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft out of Ohio State, had been sidelined since receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection in his left knee to help heal an issue that he said has been bothering him off and on since the season began.Young entered Sunday averaging 13.3 points over 25 minutes. He has started in all 19 games that he has played this season. Nerlens Noel Thunder Jersey . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. Chris Paul Thunder Jersey . Walcott is available for Saturdays home match against Southampton as Arsenal looks to extend its two-point lead at the top of the Premier League. The Gunners are currently the second highest scorers in the league but Wenger insists Walcott will add something extra to his team. https://www.thunderrookiesshop.com/Devon-Hall-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. Ray Allen Jersey . The team says the Spain international has a muscle pull in his right leg. Barcelona hosts third-division side Cartagena in the return leg of their round-of-32 tie after winning their first meeting 4-1. Dennis Schroder Jersey . - Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie never doubted he would bring back coach Dennis Allen for a third year despite back-to-back 4-12 records. This story appears in ESPN The Magazines September 19 NFL Preview II Issue. Subscribe today!AFTER A 12-YEAR hiatus, the World Cup returns for Round 3 on Sept. 17 in Toronto, with eight teams vying for global bragging rights, including the new continent-spanning Team Europe and Team North America, with 23-and-unders from the U.S. and Canada. Who will win? For that, we used the goals versus threshold (GVT)* metric -- think WAR -- to rank each roster. Then we sought out ESPNs mullet man himself, Barry Melrose, to pinpoint each teams X-factor player. Spoiler alert: The Canadians appear to be good at hockey.1. CANADAJust how good is Canada? The likes of Taylor Hall and P.K. Subban (who both posted north of 50 points in the NHL last season) didnt make the cut. Despite the scratch of the Stars Jamie Benn, forwards on this roster recorded an average of 65 points last season -- seven more than the U.S. team, the next-highest group. All seven defensemen averaged over 23 minutes per game, and Carey Price, the 2014-15 NHL MVP, will man the net. Giving Sidney Crosby and the Canadians home-ice advantage to defend the teams 2004 title almost feels unfair.MELROSE X-FACTOR: LW BRAD MARCHAND I think Marchand is a real lightning rod for Canada. If theyre a little flat, he will go out, run into somebody, get somebody mad and get Canada fired up.2. UNITED STATESFor those whove forgotten, the U.S. did win the first World Cup back in 96. And if Patrick Kane (46 goals for the Blackhawks) & Co. can give Team USAs trio of goaltenders (Jonathan Quick, Cory Schneider and Ben Bishop, who combined for a .923 save percentage) enough goal support, it has a shot this time too. The U.S. can grind down opponents with centers Ryan Kesler and David Backes in front of the net, creating opportunities for playmakers such as Kane, Zach Parise and T.J. Oshie. The test for the U.S. comes early: a faceoff with Canada in the preliminary round on Sept. 20.MELROSE X-FACTOR: LW JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK JVR is a 6-foot-3 forward with skill. The Americans need a big forward to have a successful tournament, and he is a bit of a wild card. A real pivotal player.3. SWE?DENThe Swedish roster combines experienced vets in forward Loui Eriksson, center Nicklas Backstrom and Canucks twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin with youth in the form of defenseman Victor Hedman and forward Filip Forsberg. The Swedes play a fast finesse game and can move the puck up ice in a hurry -- their defenders averaged 33 assists in the NHL last season, more than the average for any other team. Sweden has ten 20-goal scorers, which should provide plenty of cover for goalie Henrik Lundqvist, who holds a .923 save percentage over the past five seasons.MELROSE X-FACTOR: LW GABRIEL LANDESKOG I think its time for these young Swedes to take over up front, and Landeskog is one of those guys. Hes obviously a leader -- Colorado made him the captain very young.4. RUSSIAWhat to expect from Russia? Fast, physical, powerful -- just like its best player, left winger Alex Ovechkin, who netted 50 goals for the Caps last season. Russias forward group -- led by Ovi, St. Louis Vladimir Tarasenko, Pavel Datsyuk and Chicagos Artemi Panarin -- averaged 0.33 goals per game last season, third best of the eight teams. But will that be enough to counter shortcomings on the defensive side? The defense lacks a true game breaker, and none of Russias three goalies bettered a 2.75 goals-against average last season.MELROSE X-FACTOR: RW VLADIMIR TARASENKO Every year Tarasenko is a dominant player -- one of the top point getters, runs the power play. I think its time ffor him to show people how good he is on the big stage.dddddddddddd5. NORTH AMERICAIts unfair to criticize this squad for being young. It literally exists for that reason. Still, the roster has just a combined 240 games of playoff experience, and six of the players have yet to skate in a playoff game. Break out the Baby Bjorns! Then again, whats age when youve got skill in the trio of phenoms Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel and Auston Matthews and the size of Seth Jones (6-4) and Colton Parayko (6-6) on defense? Also, the goaltending situation cleared up this spring with Matt Murrays Stanley Cup heroics for the Pens. Dont sleep on the JV team.MELROSE X-FACTOR: LW BRANDON SAAD The vast majority of this roster hasnt played significant minutes in big games -- Brandon Saad has. The more important he becomes in the lineup, the better he plays.6. EUROPEEurope falls into the dreaded Group A with the U.S. and Canada -- which would be great if this were a U.N. cocktail party and not, you know, ?a winner-take-all hockey tournament. Europes bigger problem? This is the oldest squad at the World Cup, with an average age of 30. The team will lean on the two-way play of center Anze Kopitar (plus-34) and scoring of winger Mats Zuccarello (26 goals). But the key will be picking the goalie, as the Islanders Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss are both capable of winning games -- but also capable of blowing them.MELROSE X-FACTOR: D ROMAN JOSI Josi is going to be on the ice against every other teams best player. Hes going to see a ton of tough minutes, plus kill penalties and play the power play.7. CZECH REPUBLICThe good news? Forward Roman Cervenka, a late injury replacement for David Krejci, scored 23 goals last season in the Czech Extraliga, the most of anyone on the Czech roster. The bad news? Ten players on Team Canada and seven on Team USA surpassed that tally. The Czech Republic will need wingers Jakub Voracek and Ondrej Palat (55 and 40 points, respectively, last season) to take over games and goalie Petr Mrazek to play like he did in the first half of last season for Detroit (.932 save percentage before the All-Star break, .899 after). Defense is another story: The Czechs lack anyone who played at least 23 minutes per game last year.MELROSE X-FACTOR: RW DAVID PASTRNAK With his speed and shooting ability, Pastrnak can get open. Hes got a lot of experience for a guy at his age and could really become a star of that Czech team.8. FINLANDPatrik Laine checks in as the youngest player in the tournament, but the 18-year-old might have to put the Finns on his back at the World Cup. Laine, who scored 17 goals in Liiga last season, joins only one NHL 20-goal scorer on the roster, the Panthers Aleksander Barkov. On the other end of the ice, Olli Maatta and Sami Vatanen will have to be ready for big minutes on defense, and Tuukka Rask, who led Finland to a bronze medal in the 2014 Olympics, will have ?to rebound in net from a poor NHL campaign by his standards (2.56 GAA for Boston).MELROSE X-FACTOR: C MIKKO KOIVU Koivu has size, skating ability and a hockey pedigree but always leaves me wanting more out of him. I still think hes the most talented forward on that team.*Goals versus threshold (GVT) is calculated based on a three-year weighted average of the goal differential for each player on each roster compared with a replacement-level NHLer and then adjusted to likely ice time in the World Cup. Courtesy of Hockey Abstract and Hockey Prospectus. ' ' '