News

1:15 AM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN LOS ANGELES — The Golden State Warriors have dug themselves into a deep hole — their 124-116 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers being the latest shovel full of issues. They’ve lost four games in a row for the first time this season. They’ve dropped eight of their past 10

2:49 PM ET Andrew LopezESPN New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has returned to the city after spending nearly two months in Portland rehabbing his injured foot away from the team, sources told ESPN on Saturday. Williamson, who fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot during the summer, is set to rejoin the team

7:37 PM ET Jamal CollierESPN CHICAGO — Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez has been cleared to be a full participant at practice for the first time since undergoing back surgery in December, coach Mike Budenhozler said prior to Friday’s game against the Bulls. Lopez went through a light workout on the court Friday at the

1:11 AM ET Jamal CollierESPN CHICAGO — Fans at United Center may have reveled in Bulls forward Derrick Jones Jr.’s flagrant foul on Milwaukee Bucks guard Grayson Allen on Friday night, but Jones insisted afterward that the foul was not intentional and denied being a dirty player. Jones was given a flagrant foul 1 in

11:34 AM ET The lawyers leading the NBA’s investigation into the Phoenix Suns are preparing to interview Robert Sarver regarding the accusations against the team and its majority owner, sources close to the investigation told ESPN. Sources said more than 300 people have been interviewed as part of the investigation, which the league launched in

8:00 AM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN “DUB NATION, are you ready?” The crowd roared its affirmation as the lights dimmed to announce the Golden State Warriors‘ starting five. Draymond Green‘s name was called first, followed by Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney and Stephen Curry. Curry’s name is usually announced last, but the night of Jan. 9 was

10:16 PM ET NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets star forward Kevin Durant spent part of his morning brushing off the notion that he wasn’t going to be a “savior” for his struggling team, then he almost did just that in a 113-107 loss to the Miami Heat on Thursday night. After missing a month and

3:33 PM ET Bradley Beal says he is no rush to make a decision on his future but acknowledged he is leaning toward re-signing with the Washington Wizards this offseason. “It’s fair,” Beal told reporters in Washington on Thursday when asked if he is leaning toward staying with the Wizards. “It’s fair.” Beal is eligible

12:54 AM ET Andrew LopezESPN NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Pelicans wore yellow socks during their game Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings in a show of solidarity with Ukraine and to “bring more attention” to the large-scale invasion of the country by Russian military. Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas, who is from Lithuania, along

12:49 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN PHILADELPHIA — After a third straight sterling performance in a 76ers uniform — but a first in front of the fans here inside Wells Fargo Center — James Harden declared Philadelphia feels like home. “Just exciting,” Harden said after finishing with 26 points, nine rebounds and nine assists in Philadelphia’s

8:00 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN EXACTLY TWO YEARS ago, the New York Knicks officially hired Leon Rose as president of basketball operations. Since then, Rose has had one in-person news conference — a gathering with a small group of reporters prior to the 2021-22 NBA season at the team’s practice facility in Westchester, New York.

8:00 AM ET SIXTY YEARS AGO, Wilt Chamberlain posted what is widely regarded to be the greatest individual performance in NBA history, scoring 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors in a win over the New York Knicks. On March 2, 1962, Chamberlain made 36 of his 63 shot attempts and 28 of his 32 free

9:36 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN BOSTON — Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown (right ankle sprain) and Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (concussion protocols) exited Tuesday night’s game at TD Garden and did not return. Brown went down in a heap on a drive early in the first quarter, when it appeared he either slipped or

12:47 PM ET Isaiah Thomas is signing a 10-day contract with Charlotte, a source told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The veteran point guard has played in five games this season with the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks, signing 10-day deals with each team during the height of the league’s COVID-19 outbreak this season. Thomas averaged

8:01 PM ET The Philadelphia 76ers are emerging as front-runners to acquire center DeAndre Jordan either as a waiver claim or a free-agent signing, sources told ESPN on Monday. The Sixers have been aggressive in pursuit of a backup center since including Andre Drummond in the trade-deadline deal to acquire James Harden from the Brooklyn

11:17 PM ET ESPN News Services MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant threw down a massive dunk over 7-footer Jakob Poeltl, knocked down a buzzer-beater without touching the ground and then broke his own franchise record for points in a regular-season game just two days after setting it. Morant scored 52 points on

11:14 AM ET New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Monday that he wants to see Kyrie Irving playing home games at Barclays Center but making an exception for the unvaccinated Brooklyn Nets star guard “would send the wrong message” to the rest of the city. Adams made his comments to CNBC and added that

8:00 AM ET What happens when you pair a former NBA MVP with the current favorite to win this season’s award? Well, you get the latest version of the Philadelphia 76ers, who have looked unguardable since James Harden‘s debut alongside Joel Embiid on Friday night. In two games — on the road against the Minnesota

5:47 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN NEW YORK — After two games playing alongside James Harden, it took a single word for Joel Embiid to describe how he felt about the way the two superstars are fitting together in the Philadelphia 76ers‘ offense. “Unstoppable,” Embiid said with a smile after finishing with 37 points — including

3:21 PM ET Associated Press WASHINGTON — Langston Galloway scored 16 points and seven-time NBA All-Star Joe Johnson added 14 to lift the United States to an 89-67 win over Mexico in FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifying Sunday. The Americans (3-1) avenged their lone loss of this qualifying round, routing the previously unbeaten Mexican team

1:44 AM ET MILWAUKEE — Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving said he can finally see “light at the end of the tunnel” after playing the best game of his truncated season in Saturday’s surprising 126-123 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. The star guard scored a season-high 38 points to lead his undermanned team down the

11:30 PM ET ESPN News Services CHICAGO —Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant broke the franchise record for most points in a regular-season game with 46 on Saturday night as he powered his team to a 116-110 victory over the Bulls. Morant broke Mike Miller‘s previous record (45 points) set in 2007. The third-year guard set

1:10 PM ET MILWAUKEE — Brooklyn Nets star forward Kevin Durant continues to make progress in his rehab from a sprained left MCL and his return to the floor will happen at some point in the next week, according to coach Steve Nash. “Every day closer,” Nash said after shootaround before Saturday’s game against the

12:42 AM ET The final verdict on the Philadelphia 76ers trade for James Harden won’t come for months — maybe even years. Until then, every moment Harden and Philadelphia’s MVP-frontrunner Joel Embiid spend on the court together will be something of a Rohrsarch test. Some will see chemistry, others calamity — sometimes both will be

6:57 PM ET In the aftermath of LeBron James‘ public comments on a possible return to Cleveland and media reports describing his agency’s displeasure with the organization, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul met with Lakers owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka on Tuesday, insisting that there’s no movement underway to seek management changes

6:00 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN Shortly after James Harden was introduced as the newest member of the Philadelphia 76ers, the superstar guard was asked the question dominating the NBA world after the blockbuster trade deadline swap with the Brooklyn Nets for Ben Simmons: How will this partnership with Joel Embiid work? “I think we complement

3:00 PM ET NEW YORK — As Ben Simmons begins a new chapter in his career with the Brooklyn Nets, questions about the divorce he experienced with the Philadelphia 76ers linger. But as those questions about how he’ll fit with a new team after such a spectacular exit with an old one continue to filter

10:47 PM ET The Sacramento Kings and Denver Nuggets held a moment of silence and linked arms in solidarity with Sacramento center Alex Len and his home country of Ukraine ahead of Thursday’s game at the Golden 1 Center. Len and Toronto Raptors wing Svi Mykhailiuk, the two Ukrainian players in the NBA this season,

8:00 AM ET The NBA’s Eastern Conference is deeper than it has been in decades, setting up what should be a wild sprint to the playoffs over the final seven weeks of the 2021-22 NBA regular season. With five teams within 2.5 games of first place in the conference, and just six games separating sixth

4:23 PM ET NEW YORK — As the Brooklyn Nets continue to wait and hope that the New York City vaccination mandate gets lifted and Kyrie Irving is able to play in home games again, Nets coach Steve Nash sees a renewed sense of optimism from the 29-year-old guard that a resolution might be coming