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LOS ANGELES -- The health of center DeAndre Jordan was a major concern for the Los Angeles Clippers heading into Mondays matchup against the Phoenix Suns at Staples Center.Jordan suffered what was initially diagnosed as a sprained right thumb in the third quarter of Sundays 88-75 win over the Utah Jazz.Jordan, who was in noticeable pain, went to the bench and was treated by a trainer before returning to play almost five minutes in the fourth quarter. He finished with seven points and 16 rebounds in 28 minutes.Jordan was examined more extensively Sunday night. The Clippers said an X-ray was negative, meaning Jordan does not have any broken bones.I was worried because I saw the swelling in his hand, Clippers coach Doc Rivers said after the game. When its that quick, thats never a good thing. Then, he went back in and I started feeling a little bit better.The Clippers (2-0) have relied on Jordan, their defense, rebounding and key contributions from their bench to start the season well. They limited the Jazz to 39.7 percent shooting and enjoyed a slight edge in rebounding (49-43), an area the Clippers were lax in last season.Weve just got to continue to grow and continue to defend, said backup guard Austin Rivers, who delivered a game-high 19 points against the Jazz.Reserve forward-center Marreese Speights, who joined the Clippers as a free agent after three seasons with the Golden State Warriors, has come up with crucial plays in both of the teams victories. After scoring 15 points in the season-opening triumph over the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday, Speights drew four offensive fouls against Utah.The Suns (0-3) will continue charging toward a win. Sundays 106-100 loss to the Golden State Warriors came on the heels of setbacks to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Sacramento Kings.The wins are going to come this season, said forward T.J. Warren, who had 26 points against the Warriors and has been one of the early surprises for the Suns.Warren is averaging a team-best 22 points per game with seven rebounds. He scored a career-high 30 against the Thunder.So were not worried; weve just got to continue to play hard. My teammates are doing a good job of finding me and I just have to stay aggressive Warren said.The Suns also have injury woes.Guard Devin Booker, who showed much promise last season by scoring 13.8 points per game in his rookie campaign, is nursing a sprained big toe. Booker got hurt in Fridays loss to the Thunder. He was bothered by the toe against Golden State, managing just seven points on 3-of-12 shooting.Devins tough, Suns coach Earl Watson said. But if you watch him, hes been limping around a lot. He has no excuses, but we need him to be efficient and he has to be healthy to be efficient.Eric Bledsoe, a former Clipper, is off to a solid start. 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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Tom Brady has made no secret of his desire to play into his 40s.Hes reached the halfway point of his 17th NFL season, and at age 39 heads into the Patriots bye week performing at a level that puts him in the conversation to become the leagues oldest MVP.He started the 2016 season as a spectator while he served a four-game suspension as part of his punishment for his role in the Deflategate saga.Since his return to the lineup Oct. 9, Brady has shown few signs of decline in his four starts. Hes 4-0, has already thrown for 12 touchdowns and 1,319 yards, and if the season ended today his 73.1 percent completion rate and league-leading 133.9 passer rating would both be career highs.Whats more, with 198 victories, he will enter the second half of the regular season just three wins shy of passing Brett Favre (199) and Peyton Manning (200) to become the winningest quarterback in NFL history.For Brady, though, the most important number is New Englands NFL-best 7-1 record.Its pretty early, so, theres a long way to go, he said. Seven wins, its a good place, I think decent position. But coach always says `Seven wins wont get you anything in this league. Hes right. Weve got a lot of football ahead.For what its worth, former quarterbacks Rich Gannon (2002) and Peyton Manning (2013) are the current oldest MVP winners, having won the award at the age of 37. If Brady can do it a year shy of 40, it would bolster his claim as the best quarterback in history.One of the biggest questions coming out of the preseason was how Brady would be able to adjust after not being able to practice with his teammates for the month he was suspended.He was able to get in work with new additions Chris Hogan and Martellus Bennett during preseason workouts, but only played in the final two preseason games after missing the first to attend a memorial service, and the second after accidentally slicing his thumb with a pair of scissors.There was also the nagging hamstring injury to favorite option Rob Gronkowski, which limited him over the first month as well.But Brady has made it work, and so far has been able to integrate both new and old options seamlessly; spreading around the wealth in offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels passing attack.ddddddddddddIn each of his four games Brady has completed passes to at least six different receivers, and has twice completed passes to eight different receivers. Hes done it without throwing an interception, while also showing more of a willingness to throw deeper routes and by opening himself up to hits by scrambling more.One example of Bradys toughness came during the Patriots 41-25 win at Buffalo was when he was able to hang in the pocket and deliver a 53-yard touchdown pass to Hogan just a play after taking a hard hit.Ive seen it for years, receiver Julian Edelman said. The guys a tough SOB. Its a pleasure to get to play with a guy like him.McDaniels says Bradys dedicated approach has been the thing thats stuck out since his return.Tommy is just consistent. Thats the thing, McDaniels said. He prepares as hard as he ever has. He doesnt leave any stone unturned. He takes care of his body. He gets his rest.Then comes out there and takes advantage of every minute of practice to try to work with his teammates to get better and really learn the game plan to go out there and execute it.That doesnt surprise me. When you work hard and try to do things right, you give yourself a chance to have some success. And weve certainly done that so far.As well as things have gone for the Patriots, the trade of defense stalwart Jamie Collins last week was a reminder to everyone -- Brady included -- that no one has infinite time in Patriots locker room.You cant be around this long and not realize that the world will keep spinning and the sun will come up tomorrow without you, Brady said.Thats just the way it goes. I think you enjoy just the experiences that you have, but also understand that it just keeps going on. It could happen to anybody. You just have to show up to work, do the best you can do every day, and let your performance just try to speak for itself.---AP NFL websites: http://pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower ' ' '