On Thursday, the NBA released the first returns of voting for next month’s All-Star Game. Within the hour, people everywhere — both fans and media members alike — were sharing their thoughts. Of course, this is hardly a new phenomenon and, more often than not, the shakier results end up smoothing out by the final
Month: January 2019
11:45 AM ET The future of sports betting-infused game broadcasts will be on display Friday, when the Washington Wizards host the Milwaukee Bucks. NBC Sports Washington Plus will produce an alternate broadcast for the Bucks-Wizards game that will feature a free-to-play predictive contest with a $500 prize, along with real-time sports-betting data and statistics that
9:58 PM ET MINNEAPOLIS — After a 108-86 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves dropped the Los Angeles Lakers to 1-5 without LeBron James this season, Lakers coach Luke Walton said he wants to see more fire from his team’s two former lottery picks, Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram, as they try to make it through
In the NBA, tough decisions must be made. Sometimes it’s a front office deciding to go in another direction with a trade or release. Other times, it’s a coach having to pull a guy out of the active rotation. Most of the time, however, it’s a player figuring out the next move to benefit his
7:24 PM ET Adrian WojnarowskiESPN The Minnesota Timberwolves have fired team president and head coach Tom Thibodeau, a league source told ESPN on Sunday. The Wolves’ victory over the Lakers on Sunday raised their home record to 14-6, including 8-2 against Western Conference foes, and overall record to 19-21. They are 11th in the West
2:20 AM ET Malika AndrewsESPN MILWAUKEE – Mike Budenholzer dismissed the idea that Saturday’s showdown with the Toronto Raptors meant anything more than Friday’s blowout win over the Atlanta Hawks, but the energy in the building and the intensity of competition on the floor undercut Budenholzer’s contention from the opening tip. As Kawhi Leonard returns
In the NBA, tough decisions must be made. Sometimes it’s a front office deciding to go in another direction with a trade or release. Other times, it’s a coach having to pull a guy out of the active rotation. Most of the time, however, it’s a player figuring out the next move to benefit his
On Thursday, the NBA released the first returns of voting for next month’s All-Star Game. Within the hour, people everywhere — both fans and media members alike — were sharing their thoughts. Of course, this is hardly a new phenomenon and, more often than not, the shakier results end up smoothing out by the final
TORONTO, ON – MAY 03: Head Coach Dwane Casey of the Toronto Raptors applauds in the second half of Game Two of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2018 NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre on May 3, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that,
Blake Griffin has a new style of play to match his new team, and it’s unlocked a lot in his game in year nine of his NBA career. Blake Griffin played seven full seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers before they traded him to the Detroit Pistons in his eighth NBA season. Blake was an
12:55 AM ET ESPN News Services SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Stephen Curry scored 20 of his 42 points in the fourth quarter and had 10 3-pointers, and the Golden State Warriors held on to beat the Sacramento Kings 127-123 on Saturday night. The two teams combined to make 41 3-pointers, breaking the NBA record for most
3:25 AM ET LOS ANGELES — Enes Kanter will not travel to London when the New York Knicks play the Washington Wizards on Jan. 17, saying he fears for his life because of his ongoing clash with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Kanter, a native of Turkey, has been an outspoken critic of the Turkish
3:52 AM ET PORTLAND, Ore. — It’s not often that Russell Westbrook will admit to a game containing some extra level of motivation. But with it having been nearly five years since the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Portland Trail Blazers on the road, it had been on his mind for more than the previous
We take stock of the draft picture with our first 2019 NBA Mock Draft, as college basketball enters conference play and the NBA standings take shape. The order for this mock draft is based upon 538’s CARM-Elo projections as of Dec. 29. There is a clear top-five right now in the race for the No.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – NOVEMBER 03: Justin Holiday #7 of the Chicago Bulls drives against PJ Tucker #17 of the Houston Rockets at United Center on November 03, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions
Everyone knows about what Luka Doncic is doing this season, but these five NBA rookies probably deserve a little more recognition for that they’re doing. If you’re tired of reading about Luka Doncic, Deandre Ayton and Jaren Jackson, Jr. then this piece is for you. Instead of focusing on the top five NBA rookies of
John Wall won’t see the court for 10 months thanks to season-ending surgery. Where does leave his contract in the NBA’s ranks of the worst of the worst? Earlier this season, Marc Berman of the NY Post dropped a line in one of his articles about the Knicks that “some in the league believe” New
PORTLAND, OR – DECEMBER 30: Jimmy Butler #23 of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on against the Portland Trail Blazers on December 30, 2018 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of
TARRYTOWN, NY – AUGUST 12: Mo Bamba #5 of the Orlando Magic and Trae Young #11 of the Atlanta Hawks pose for a photo during the 2018 NBA Rookie Shoot on August 12, 2018 at the Madison Square Garden Training Center in Tarrytown, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by
Defense has always been Lloyd Pierce’s point of focus. As a player at Santa Clara University, he dedicated himself to that end of the floor while Steve Nash directed the offense. As an assistant on Brett Brown’s staff in Philadelphia, he engineered a modern, top-five defense built around Joel Embiid and a host of physical,
ATLANTA, GA – SEPTEMBER 24: Trae Young #11 of the Atlanta Hawks poses for portraits during media day at Emory Sports Medicine Complex on September 24, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) Miami vs. Virginia: Betting odds, prediction, TV channel, live stream by Mark Thomas J.J. Watt or T.J. Watt? Who
Let’s talk about two players who, on the surface level, seem to have a lot in common. Both are rookies. Both were lottery picks. Both are point guards. Both are starters. Both even have just four letters in their first name. Just about everything else about them, however, seems different. One is starting on one
8:04 PM ET Associated Press PIRAEUS, Greece — Rick Pitino’s winning streak with Greek club Panathinaikos is over. After two straight victories in his European coaching job, Pitino’s team was dealt a 79-65 loss on the road Friday to archrival Olympiakos in a game for the Euroleague, Europe’s premier club competition. Olympiakos broke open the
4:52 AM ET OAKLAND, Calif. – James Harden repeatedly flashed two fingers in the moments after he led the Houston Rockets to a come-from-behind, 135-134 overtime win over the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night, the reigning MVP’s most recent statement about his plans to claim that award again. >photo1> This historic run by Harden,
4:01 AM ET OAKLAND, Calif. — After blowing a 20-point second-half lead and watching James Harden hit an “impossible” game-winning 3-pointer, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson felt the Golden State Warriors gave away a 135-134 overtime loss to the Houston Rockets. “For sure,” Curry said. “You have a lead like that, you don’t lose at
8:34 PM ET Adrian WojnarowskiESPN The Memphis Grizzlies have acquired Chicago Bulls forward Justin Holiday for two players and two future second-round draft picks, league sources told ESPN. The Grizzlies sent the Bulls their 2019 and 2020 second-round picks, along with forward Wayne Selden and guard MarShon Brooks, sources said. Memphis coveted the athletic playmaking
It is no secret that Lonzo Ball is a poor free throw shooter, but it did come as quite a surprise when Lakers fans began booing him last night. Los Angeles Lakers fans were restless on Wednesday night. Not only did they boo Oklahoma City Thunder star Paul George darn-near every time he touched the
Dennis Smith Jr. of the Dallas Mavericks has had a pretty rough season, to say the least. His season got even rougher against the Clippers. If there is one great outlier about the Dallas Mavericks recent resurgence, is that their run has covered up the regression of second-year point guard Dennis Smith Jr. Looking at
Western Conference Player of the Month Tobias Harris has the Los Angeles Clippers at the top of the West, and it’s hard not to be happy for him. This is Tobias Harris’ eighth NBA season. If the Los Angeles Clippers were to trade him this year, he will have as many seasons where he has
8:34 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN THE FIRST MEETING Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse had with Kawhi Leonard came with trepidation. As Nurse walked down the hall from his office inside the team’s practice facility to the coach’s meeting room last July, just weeks after being named Toronto’s head coach, uncertainty loomed large. Nurse had heard