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9:22 AM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Some key Kobe Bryant memorabilia, including two of his Los Angeles Lakers uniforms and cement handprints from his induction into the Grauman’s Chinese Theater hall of fame gallery, are going up for sale in April. Julien’s Auctions said Thursday that the items would be up for sale

8:19 PM ET ESPN News Services CLEVELAND — Philadelphia 76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid left Wednesday night’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first quarter and was ruled out with a left shoulder sprain. Embiid appeared to collide with Cavaliers center Ante Zizic while being fouled late in the first quarter. The 7-footer held

8:51 AM ET CONFUSION REIGNS AS the Utah Jazz jog back on defense. Mike Conley is scurrying across the floor in search of someone to guard. It is Monday night in Salt Lake City, and the Phoenix Suns are pushing the ball up the floor after a routine defensive rebound early in the fourth quarter.

12:27 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN TORONTO — Tuesday night marked the first time since Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks came back to Scotiabank Arena since losing to the Toronto Raptors in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. And after the Bucks came away with a different result this time, winning 108-97 over the

4:51 PM ET Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons has a nerve impingement in his lower back and is expected to be sidelined for an extended period of time, league sources told ESPN on Tuesday. Simmons is undergoing treatment and will be reevaluated in two weeks, but there’s little expectation that he will be close to

7:00 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN PASCAL SIAKAM RELISHES the work. The process of getting better drives the Toronto Raptors forward in a way that sets him apart. “He was always the first one in the gym,” former teammate DeMar DeRozan said. “He always came back to the gym at night. He worked on everything he

10:30 PM ET Bradley Beal became the first player since Kobe Bryant to score 50 points on back-to-back nights when he dropped a career-high 55 in the Washington Wizards‘ 137-134 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night. Beal shot 58% from the field — including 8 of 13 from 3-point range, one night after

11:00 PM ET LOS ANGELES — In the 6 a.m. hour, a line begins snaking down Olympic Blvd. “It’s going to be a crazy day, bro,” one security guard says to another as people flood the plaza outside Staples Center. Peddlers hawk memorabilia on nearby corners. City bus signages blink, “RIP KOBE.” In the seven

3:42 PM ET A memorial service inside Staples Center on Monday celebrated the lives of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna. The date — Feb. 24 — reflects the basketball jersey numbers worn by Kobe (No. 24) and Gianna (No. 2). The service was held just less than a month after

10:33 PM ET The Milwaukee Bucks have clinched the earliest playoff berth in at least 15 years, according to Elias Sports Bureau research. The NBA postseason is not set to begin for another 55 days. The Bucks clinched Sunday despite not playing because the Washington Wizards lost to the Chicago Bulls. Milwaukee is 48-8 and

8:36 PM ET Lawrence Tanter had read through the plans dozens of times before he got into his car, put on John Coltrane’s “A Love Supreme” and drove to Staples Center on Jan. 31. The Los Angeles Lakers were going to play their first game since the death of Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and

2:12 PM ET Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. has a sprained left knee and will be reevaluated in two weeks, the team said Sunday. Jackson left Friday’s 117-105 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers late in the second quarter after an awkward fall when he was contesting a shot. He didn’t return for the

1:19 AM ET Eric WoodyardESPN MILWAUKEE — With Lil Wayne’s “Kobe Bryant” song blasting throughout Fiserv Forum, reigning NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo went through an intense pregame workout, two hours ahead of the tipoff against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday. Once the sweaty, 6-foot-11 Milwaukee Bucks superstar wrapped up on the court, he hit the

11:04 PM ET MIAMI — In the arena he made “his house” and the county nicknamed after him, Dwyane Wade starred up to the rafters with a wide grin as his No.3 jersey was lifted to its rightful place. Suited in an all-black suit and shirt combination, Wade stood center-court at halftime and delivered a

9:42 AM ET The fifth-place Philadelphia 76ers are underperforming, and the spiciest take surrounding the team right now is that its two young superstars can’t play together. But is that true? A quick look at recent Sixers history reveals that Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid can be an awesome duo. During 1,306 minutes with both

1:49 AM ET OKLAHOMA CITY — Before training camp, as nine new Oklahoma City Thunder players were getting to know one another while the organization itself was recalibrating to a post-Russell Westbrook world, Billy Donovan sat down with the three point guards on the roster and presented a bold plan. They — being Chris Paul,

7:19 PM ET The Los Angeles Lakers intend to waive DeMarcus Cousins to clear a roster spot for Markieff Morris, if he clears waivers on Sunday, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne. Morris negotiated a buyout with the Detroit Pistons on Friday, leaving $4.3 million (the remainder of this season and his 2020-21

8:49 AM ET One-third of the NBA season to go, and 10 things to think about: 1. The new NBA All-Star Game With Sunday’s All-Star Game tied at 146, Kyle Lowry ran a pick-and-roll with Giannis Antetokounmpo, drawing a switch of Chris Paul onto the MVP. As Antetokounmpo burrowed into position for an entry pass

1:49 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN PHILADELPHIA — After putting up 39 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 112-104 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, Joel Embiid declared he is the best player in the world, and that the aggression with which he played against Brooklyn was a carryover from the way

10:45 PM ET ESPN News Services ATLANTA — Trae Young had a career-high 50 points and the Atlanta Hawks scored the last 10 points of the game to beat the Miami Heat 129-124 on Thursday night. Young made 18 of 19 free throws and 8 of 15 3-pointers to set his scoring high in his

3:48 PM ET Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard will not play Friday against the New Orleans Pelicans and told reporters that he could miss three or four games due to his right groin strain. Lillard suffered the injury on a drive to the basket during a Feb. 12 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. He

5:43 PM ET Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns will remain sidelined indefinitely as he continues to recover from a left wrist injury. Coach Ryan Saunders told reporters that the team held Towns out of its first practice after the All-Star break on Wednesday. Saunders said Towns will miss upcoming games, but the coach did not

7:46 PM ET It is a “good assumption” the NBA will use a target score to end next season’s All-Star Game after experimenting with the concept for the first time on Sunday, Byron Spruell, the NBA’s president of league operations, told ESPN Wednesday in New York. That is not set in stone yet, as league

8:06 AM ET NBA Insiders Can LeBron James catch Giannis Antetokounmpo in the NBA MVP race? Who is the favorite to win the NBA Finals? Does Zion Williamson have any chance in the Rookie of the Year race against Ja Morant? We polled the ESPN Forecast panel of experts for their predictions now that we

1:09 AM ET SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors star guard Stephen Curry still isn’t cleared to take contact in practice as he continues his rehab from a broken left hand. But as he gets closer to returning over the next few weeks, his teammates and coaches dropped a new nickname on him during Tuesday’s

10:02 PM ET After a brief and tumultuous tenure, John Beilein is leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers as coach, league sources tell ESPN. The Cavaliers are promoting associate head coach JB Bickerstaff to become the full-time head coach, and he’ll run his first practice on Wednesday evening, league sources said. Beilein, 67, is expected to say

12:05 PM ET High school prospect Makur Maker will be eligible for the 2020 NBA draft if he applies as an early-entry candidate, according to a memo distributed to NBA teams by the league office. The memo also included a revised agreement to the collective bargaining agreement between the NBA and the National Basketball Players

3:54 PM ET Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving has been elected as a vice president of the National Basketball Players Association. Irving replaces Pau Gasol on the NBPA executive committee. Gasol’s three-year term expired. “This was the right time for me to run for a leadership position in the NBPA,” Irving said. “I have been

6:38 PM ET Adrian Wojnarowski Close Senior NBA Insider Host of The Woj Pod Joined ESPN in 2017 Tim MacMahon Close ESPN Staff Writer Joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009 Covers the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Mavericks Appears regularly on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM The Houston Rockets are doubling down on small ball, planning to use

3:27 PM ET Nick DePaulaESPN With nearly 6.5 million viewers tuned in to an epic dunk-off between Aaron Gordon and Derrick Jones Jr., the 2020 Slam Dunk Contest helped launch each player not only to new heights on the hardwood, but also in the marketing world. In the aftermath of his narrowly claimed Slam Dunk