8:58 PM ET NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets star forward Kevin Durant injured his left knee during the second quarter of Saturday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans. The team called it a left knee sprain, and it occurred with just under six minutes left in the quarter as Pelicans guard Herb Jones drove to
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12:36 PM ET DALLAS — Mavericks power forward/center Kristaps Porzingis has cleared the NBA’s health and safety protocols after missing the past seven games and is expected to play in Saturday night’s home game against the Orlando Magic. Mavericks coach Jason Kidd also cleared the protocols. Dallas won six of the seven games missed by
With Cam Reddish whisked away to the New York Knicks, reports now reveal that the Los Angeles Lakers tried — and failed — to court him away from Atlanta. Although Ben Simmons has taken up the NBA news cycle with his desire for a high-value trade, it seems that Cam Reddish quietly did the same
NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski indicated that there is “no movement” in the Ben Simmons trade saga — and there likely won’t be any until the 2022 NBA Draft. Persistent since last summer, the Ben Simmons trade rumors kicked up a notch in December, when Dec. 15 opened the door to more trade possibilities for the
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid and Boston Celtics center Al Horford. (Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports) UCLA football fans react to Chip Kelly’s contract extension by Ethan Lee The family of Boston Celtics forward Al Horford made waves on Twitter by bad-mouthing the Philadelphia 76ers during Friday night’s game. Al Horford’s time in Philadelphia didn’t exactly
12:08 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN PHILADELPHIA — After beating the Boston Celtics to win for the ninth time in 11 games Friday night, 76ers superstar Joel Embiid said “there’s really no urgency to change anything” with his team with just under four weeks to go until the NBA’s trade deadline. “I feel great, man,” Embiid
Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine. (Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports) Florida football schedule 2022: Way-too-early game-by-game picks for Billy Napier’s first season by Ethan Lee Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine had to leave Friday’s game against the Warriors with a knee injury but the latest update leans towards optimism. The Bulls got a big scare on
8:40 PM ET Jamal CollierESPN CHICAGO — Bulls guard Zach LaVine exited Friday’s 138-96 loss to the Golden State Warriors in the first quarter with a left knee injury and did not return. LaVine did not travel with the team to Boston for its matchup against the Celtics on Saturday night, and instead will remain
After a 941-day absence, Klay Thompson returned to the NBA in a way only he could. Meanwhile, the Boston Celtics are struggling to find an offensive rhythm. Klay Thompson made his NBA return in a way only Klay Thompson could: with a quick trigger and absolutely no conscience. Given his fiery competitiveness and stone-cold confidence,
5:26 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Anthony Davis participated in an individual on-court workout on Friday, four weeks to the day since spraining the MCL in his left knee. There is optimism within the Los Angeles Lakers organization that the star big man could return to game action sometime during L.A.’s long road trip at
Jun 17, 2019; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Canadian recording artist Drake sits beside Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry at Toronto Raptors Championship Parade. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports Vikings: Justin Jefferson laughs off ridiculous All-Pro snub by Scott Rogust Miami Heat star Kyle Lowry played some one-on-one basketball with rap star Drake at the FTX
New York Knicks guard RJ Barrett (9): Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports The New York Knicks are back to disappointing fans after a rough first half of this season. However, there are a few superstar trades that could help them recapture the magic that sent them to the playoffs last season. It’s been a typical New
10:26 AM ET After years of front-office and coaching disarray, Chicago Bulls president and chief operating officer Michael Reinsdorf hired Arturas Karnisovas in April 2020 to reshape his basketball operations and restore playoff contention. So far, the results are remarkable. Years of organizational missteps and mistrust faded fast, replaced with a fully functional first-place franchise.
The Whiteboard is The Step Back’s daily basketball newsletter, covering the NBA, WNBA and more. Subscribe here to get it delivered to you via email each morning. The Lakers are working through myriad problems right now but Russell Westbrook is the most obvious by far. In Wednesday night’s loss to the Sacramento Kings, he shot 2-of-14
The New Orleans Pelicans have announced that injured power forward Zion Williamson will continue rehabilitating his foot “away from the team.” In December, Pelicans fans awaited for the return of Zion Williamson before receiving a depressing update: Williamson’s foot injury actually regressed, and it would be much longer until he was able to return to
12:25 AM ET Jamal CollierESPN MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Bucks delivered another statement win on Thursday night with a 118-99 thumping of the Golden State Warriors, continuing their trend of being at their best this season when matched up against other likely title contenders. The Bucks blitzed the Warriors from the start, jumping out to
A new development indicates a Ben Simmons trade is nowhere near fruition: the asking price has gone up for the 76ers point guard, according to ESPN. Every day, new rumors about the availability of Ben Simmons seem to crop up, but a Jan. 12 update holds more water than prior assumptions. On Wednesday night, Simmons’
11:40 AM ET The Atlanta Hawks are trading Cam Reddish to the New York Knicks for Kevin Knox in a swap of former first-round draft selections, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Atlanta also will receive a protected first-round draft pick via Charlotte, sources tell Wojnarowski, while the Knicks will acquire veteran forward Solomon Hill and
In a trade involving four teams, the Atlanta Hawks are trading Cam Reddish, Solomon Hill and a 2025 second-rounder for Kevin Knox and a 2022 first-rounder. One month after trades open up for players picked up in free agency, a comprehensive list includes those who are restricted, those with at least two years remaining on
8:00 AM ET JIMMY BUTLER INTERRUPTED his pregame warmup and made a beeline toward half court. There, Utah Jazz swingman Joe Ingles stood, watched and waited as the All-Star closed in. Butler’s mission: Peace. At this point, the quick wits, sharp tongues and competitive fires of both Butler and Ingles had been clashing for years,
Damian Lillard has been out for almost two weeks and now the Trail Blazers will have him out even longer with the star guard now undergoing surgery. The Portland Trail Blazers haven’t had star guard Damian Lillard on the floor since Dec. 31 as he’s been nursing an abdominal injury that has plagued him a
Tyler Herro and Jusuf Nurkic had to be separated on Wednesday night as tempers nearly boiled over the top on the hardwood. The Miami Heat ended up getting a win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night, but fans were most definitely treated to some extra fireworks in the middle of the action. That’s
6:45 PM ET With the NBA trade deadline a month away, Ben Simmons‘ agent — Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul — met with Philadelphia 76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey and general manager Elton Brand on Wednesday, and the sides remain at a stalemate over the All-Star guard’s immediate future, sources told ESPN. Simmons
Chicago Bulls star DeMar DeRozan is having an MVP-caliber season because of a lesson he picked up from Kobe Bryant about always improving. Kobe Bryant may be gone but his impact on basketball will remain forever, in large and small ways. DeMar DeRozan is proof of that as he delivers an MVP-type season with the
The Whiteboard is The Step Back’s daily basketball newsletter, covering the NBA, WNBA and more. Subscribe here to get it delivered to you via email each morning. There is no hotter team in the NBA right now than the Memphis Grizzlies, who knocked off the Golden State Warriors Tuesday night to stretch their league-best win streak
Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images NFL coaching rumors: What job do insiders say is best? Wild Card preview, more by Matt Lombardo Late in the showdown between Memphis and Golden State, Ja Morant came up huge with a driving lay-up to help seal the Grizzlies win. On Tuesday night, NBA fans everywhere were treated to
8:00 AM ET Jamal CollierESPN THE STADIUM CREW has already begun to disassemble the United Center floor, turning the arena from a basketball court to a hockey rink following the Chicago Bulls‘ victory over the Orlando Magic. It’s Jan. 3, and as they stack the courtside seats, remove the scorer’s table and line the outside
The Whiteboard is The Step Back’s daily basketball newsletter, covering the NBA, WNBA and more. Subscribe here to get it delivered to you via email each morning. It’s been a brutal season for the Boston Celtics, hammered again by injuries and COVID-related absences, struggling to keep themselves in the playoff picture and dealing with some apparent
LeBron James spoke on how he wanted to snatch Malik Monk from Charlotte — and how it “doesn’t make sense” how well it all worked out. LeBron James is an athlete, entrepreneur, and at this point, general manager. While unofficially listed in Lakers management, the NBA legend has been known to have his run of
While the GOAT battle between these two rages on, LeBron James has finally tied Michael Jordan in this unique stat comprised of NBA veterans. For those who continue to debate that LeBron James is better than Michael Jordan, there’s a new statistic to use in heated Twitter arguments. On Jan. 4, James tied Jordan with