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8:02 PM ET Jamal Collier MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Bucks handed out their championship rings and unveiled the banner for the franchise’s first championship in 50 years ahead of Tuesday night’s season-opening 127-104 win over the Brooklyn Nets. “Milwaukee, we did it,” Bucks forward Khris Middleton said to the crowd at Fiserv Forum during the

8:00 AM ET It’s opening night of the 2021-22 NBA season, but our experts are already looking ahead to the postseason. Will Tuesday’s game between the Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets be an Eastern Conference finals preview? Last year, the playoff series between the two juggernauts came down to Kevin Durant‘s foot, and the Nets

8:00 AM ET The 2021-22 NBA season is here! Less than three months ago, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks were hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy after winning Game 6 of the NBA Finals over the Phoenix Suns. After somehow squeezing in the NBA draft, free agency, summer league and preseason into another truncated offseason,

6:22 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Monday that he would have “preferred” that the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association come to an agreement on a vaccine mandate, in part to avoid it becoming an “adversarial” issue for the league’s players, as it has for Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving.

3:35 PM ET Talks between the Phoenix Suns and Deandre Ayton on an extension to his rookie contract have ended without a deal, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Monday. Ayton expected a maximum contract and owner Robert Sarver hasn’t offered it yet for the 2018 No. 1 overall pick. Ayton, a key part of

8:00 AM ET It’s time for our dumbest NBA preseason tradition: League Pass Rankings! These rankings turn 10 today. I can’t believe I continue to trick publications into running them. These are not power rankings! They are watchability scores, derived from an ancient formula Bill Simmons claims appeared before him when he ingested too many

3:33 PM ET Phoenix Suns guard/forward Mikal Bridges has agreed to a four-year, $90 million rookie contract extension, his agents, Sam Goldfeder and Jordan Gertler of Excel Sports, told ESPN on Sunday. Bridges’ deal — averaging $22.5 million per season — is fully guaranteed, the agents said, and starts with the 2022-23 season. Goldfeder and

1:58 PM ET Associated Press CAMDEN, N.J. — Ben Simmons practiced with the Philadelphia 76ers for the first time this season Sunday, though no decision was made on his status for the season opener. “He was just one of the players,” coach Doc Rivers said. Simmons was a holdout for training camp and the early

6:18 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN The Charlotte Hornets signed guard LiAngelo Ball to a non-guaranteed contract Thursday, paving the way for him to eventually sign with their G League team, a source confirmed to ESPN. Ball, who averaged 9.6 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 17.4 minutes across five games for the Hornets’ entry

5:15 PM ET ESPN News Services The Sacramento Kings are exercising the third-year option on guard Tyrese Haliburton, a source told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Friday. Haliburton averaged 13.0 points, 5.3 assists and 1.5 steals in 58 games last season and was named to the NBA All-Rookie first team. He suffered a season-ending knee injury

4:45 PM ET Andrew LopezESPN THIBODAUX, La. — For roughly an hour, the New Orleans Pelicans mostly rode in silence as they traveled to Nicholls State University for an open practice. The drive from the practice facility in the suburb of Metairie out to the campus is among one of the hardest-hit areas of the

2:21 AM ET SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry looks primed for another run at the third MVP award of his career. The 33-year-old guard scored 41 points during Friday’s 119-97 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, the final preseason game before Tuesday’s regular season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers at

10:58 AM ET After architecting the franchise’s first NBA championship in 50 years, Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst has agreed to a long-term contract extension, he told ESPN on Friday. Horst had one year left on his contract, and his new deal — finalized Friday morning with his agent, Brian Elfus, and team officials

3:04 PM ET ESPN News Services Ben Simmons, who has cleared health and safety protocols and is eligible to rejoin the Philadelphia 76ers, will not play in Friday night’s preseason finale, the team announced. Simmons’ absence is listed by the team as “reconditioning” and he did not travel with the team to Detroit for the

2:33 PM ET The Boston Celtics have suspended Marcus Smart for Friday’s final preseason game against the Miami Heat, with a source telling ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that the guard was punished for missing the team flight. Smart, who has since joined the team on the trip, declined to address his suspension with reporters Thursday, saying

11:48 PM ET Kevin Durant said he wishes “none of this stuff would happen” but he isn’t upset that Kyrie Irving is not with the Brooklyn Nets. Durant said he has not spoken to Irving since the Nets decided on Tuesday that their starting point guard will not practice or play with the team until

4:27 PM ET Andrew LopezESPN METAIRIE, La. — New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson will miss the start of the regular season because of a right foot injury that required offseason surgery, Pelicans vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said on Thursday. Williamson received scans on Wednesday, and after reviewing the scans with Dr.

8:00 AM ET FIFTY-FIVE MINUTES before tipoff at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, LeBron James and Russell Westbrook take the court for a joint workout that Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy guides. “We’ve been tied at the hip, pretty much, since we made the acquisition,” James says of Westbrook at media day. “We’re

4:44 PM ET Calling it a “difficult” but “sound” decision, Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash addressed the team Wednesday and began the process of moving forward without Kyrie Irving. A day after the Nets decided not to allow their starting point guard to practice or play with them until he complies with New York City’s

3:33 PM ET Associated Press CAMDEN, N.J. — This much is known: Ben Simmons is back in Philadelphia. But there’s no clear sign yet the All-Star guard is set to rescind his trade request and actually play for the 76ers. Even coach Doc Rivers — publicly, at least — says he’s unsure of the status

8:00 AM ET Behold, the top 10 NBA teams in our 10th annual League Pass Rankings. Reminder: These are watchability scores, not power rankings! We score teams, 1-10, in five categories: ZEITGEIST: Do actual humans care about this team? STAR/HIGHLIGHT POTENTIAL: Do you stick around games, at the expense of sleep and loved ones, because

7:04 PM ET Associated Press BOSTON — The Boston Celtics say center Al Horford has tested positive for COVID-19. Horford is currently in isolation and didn’t travel with the team for its two-game exhibition road trip to Florida, which includes games in Orlando on Wednesday and Miami on Friday. He is the second Celtics player

11:12 AM ET Kyrie Irving will not play or practice with the Brooklyn Nets until he is eligible to become a full participant under local COVID-19 vaccination requirements, general manager Sean Marks said Tuesday. “Kyrie has made a personal choice, and we respect his individual right to choose. Currently the choice restricts his ability to

1:02 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Lakers guard Talen Horton-Tucker will undergo surgery to repair torn ligaments in his right thumb, sources told ESPN on Monday. Horton-Tucker, who turns 21 next month, signed a three-year, $32 million extension in the offseason, providing the team an ascending talent among a roster mostly comprised of accomplished veterans.

10:21 PM ET After staying away for the first two weeks of the preseason, 76ers All-Star guard Ben Simmons reported to the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on Monday night, sources told ESPN. As the Sixers played the Brooklyn Nets, Simmons took a COVID-19 test in the arena, sources said. The initial test starts several

8:00 AM ET SAN DIEGO — Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Paul Millsap and Joe Harris were all trying their best, but this was not their night. On the plush, manicured lawn of Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai’s picturesque La Jolla, California, home, the Nets’ four veterans were no match for Tsai’s two sons at bocce

3:58 AM ET LOS ANGELES — As preseason losses have piled up, while the Lakers‘ revamped roster hasn’t even showcased all its stars in the same game yet, Anthony Davis admitted Sunday that Los Angeles’ disjointed dawn could seep into the regular season. But he isn’t sweating it. “We want to be good, but we

1:57 PM ET Eric WoodyardESPN DETROIT, Mich. — Ben Wallace is an NBA Hall of Famer, NBA champion and four-time Defensive Player of the Year. Now the 47-year-old can add basketball operations and team engagement advisor for the Detroit Pistons to his resume. The Pistons announced Friday that Wallace has been hired in this role

2:11 PM ET Associated Press MIAMI — Udonis Haslem and Bam Adebayo were yelling at each other during practice Sunday, which was a critical step for the Heat. It meant things were normal again. Their captain is back. Haslem — the NBA’s oldest active player at 41– returned to practice Sunday, joining his team for

12:03 PM ET Associated Press GREENSBORO, N.C. — Former NBA guard J.R. Smith is set to make his debut next week as a golfer for North Carolina A&T. The school announced that Smith will play his first collegiate tournament Monday and Tuesday at the Phoenix Invitational hosted by Elon. The tournament will take place at