Basketball Page 374 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Sparks F Dearica Hamby wins Sportsmanship Award
Forward Dearica Hamby of the Los Angeles Sparks won the 2024 Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award, the WNBA announced on Wednesday.,Hamby, 30, is a first-time recipient of the award, named for the late Kim Perrot, who succumbed to cancer in August 1999 after helping the Houston Comets win the WNBA title i...

Frank Vogel joins Mavericks coaching staff as consultant
Four-time head coach Frank Vogel has joined Jason Kidd's coaching staff in Dallas as a consultant, the Mavericks head coach said. ,"It took a lot of begging," Kidd said, according to the SteinLine, "but he was talked into it and I'm happy he said yes.",Vogel was fired as head coach of the Phoenix Su...

Brittney Griner joins Unrivaled 3-on-3 offseason league
Unrivaled Basketball, a new 3-on-3 league for WNBA players in their offseason, announced Wednesday that All-Star center Brittney Griner is the 24th player in the fold.,The 30-player league is starting in January, with all games played in Miami over a 10-week span on a 60-foot court. The women will b...

Mavericks star Luka Doncic nursing calf injury
Dallas Mavericks superstar guard Luka Doncic is nursing a left calf contusion and will be re-evaluated in one week, the team announced Wednesday.,Per the Mavericks, Doncic sustained the injury during workouts this week. ,Doncic, 25, is a five-time First Team All-Pro selection. In 400 career regular-...

Clippers sign 'ultimate glue guy' G Terance Mann to extension
Los Angeles Clippers guard Terance Mann signed a contract extension, the team announced Wednesday. ,Financial terms were not disclosed by the Clippers, however multiple media outlets reported it was a three-year, $47 million extension.,"We place tremendous value on the competitiveness, consistency, ...

Lynx stifle Sun in Game 2 to even series
Courtney Williams scored 17 points to help the Minnesota Lynx beat the Connecticut Sun 77-70 in Game 2 on Tuesday night in Minneapolis, Minn., to even their semifinal series.,Williams was one of three Lynx players to score in double figures as they tied the series at 1-1. Alanna Smith scored 15 poin...

Sabrina Ionescu, Liberty hold off Aces for 2-0 edge
Sabrina Ionescu scored or assisted on almost every New York point in the fourth quarter, and she powered the host Liberty to an 88-84 win over the visiting Las Vegas Aces on Tuesday and a 2-0 lead in the WNBA semifinals.,Ionescu finished with 24 points and nine rebounds for the Liberty, who will aim...

Grizzlies F Jaren Jackson Jr. (hamstring) hurt in first practice
Memphis Grizzlies standout Jaren Jackson Jr. injured his hamstring on Tuesday during the team's first practice of the season.,Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said Jackson will undergo imaging after feeling tightness in the hamstring while driving to the basket.,"We're anticipating that it might be a ...

Bulls G Lonzo Ball eyeing opening-night return
After missing the past two seasons with a serious knee injury, Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball is hoping to be in uniform on opening night.,Ball, 26, last played in a game for Chicago on Jan. 14, 2022. Multiple procedures on his left knee since then include a rare double cartilage transplant.,"I'm fe...

Clippers' Kawhi Leonard expects knee to be chronic issue
Even though he continues to deal with right knee inflammation, Los Angeles Clippers star forward Kawhi Leonard doesn't intend to miss the team's season opener against the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 23. ,Speaking to reporters at the Clippers' media day on Monday, Leonard indicated that his knee issues won'...

'Pure joy' for LeBron James as Bronny joins him on Lakers
Before they become the first father-son duo to play together in the NBA, LeBron James and Bronny James got their close-up Monday at Los Angeles Lakers media day.,The Jameses were at the center of the show at the preseason event a few weeks before the start of the 2024-25 season. LeBron James made it...

Sun, X-factor Marina Mabrey aim for 2-0 lead on host Lynx
The Connecticut Sun will aim to take a 2-0 series lead while the Minnesota Lynx hope to even up the score when the two sides face off again Tuesday night in the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs in Minneapolis.,Connecticut took a 1-0 advantage in the five-game series on Sunday night, topping Minnesota...

Pistons await return of F Ausar Thompson (blood clot)
Ausar Thompson's rookie campaign with the Detroit Pistons ended prematurely because of a blood clot. Now, he and the team are waiting to find out when he can take the court for his sophomore season.,Trajan Langdon, the Piston's vice president of basketball operations, said Monday that Thompson still...

76ers star Joel Embiid down 30 pounds: ‘All about’ playoff health
Joel Embiid has an NBA Most Valuable Player award and five All-NBA selections to his name. What he doesn't have is a healthy run in the playoffs this decade.,The Philadelphia 76ers are expecting a leaner, meaner Embiid in 2024-25 after the center said at Monday's preseason media day that he has drop...

Damian Lillard embraced boot camp to bring 'real me' to Bucks
A few days past the one-year anniversary of Damian Lillard being traded to the Bucks, the eight-time All-Star checked in for the start of his 13th season.,Lillard turned 34 in July and said he took a different approach to the offseason. He was in regular contact with Milwaukee co-star Giannis Anteto...

Bucks G Khris Middleton working his way back from ankle surgery
Milwaukee Bucks guard Khris Middleton will be limited as training camp starts, still recovering from offseason surgery on both ankles, coach Doc Rivers said Monday.,Middleton, 33, will start camp in Irvine, Calif., sitting out five-on-five work initially, Rivers said.,"He'll participate in camp," Ri...

Bulls G Josh Giddey working through ruptured ankle ligament
New Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey said he ruptured an ankle ligament while playing for Australia at the Paris Olympics but expects to start the season on time.,Speaking at the Bulls' media day on Monday, Giddey said the injury to his anterior talofibular ligament occurred during Australia's final ...

Valkyries' expansion draft set to take place Dec. 6
The roster of the expansion Golden State Valkyries will begin to take shape when the WNBA conducts an expansion draft on Dec. 6.,The Valkyries will begin play in 2025 as the league's 13th team, with franchises in Toronto and Portland set to come on board in 2026.,Each current WNBA team can protect s...

Liberty intend to show more of same in Game 2 vs. Aces
The New York Liberty are chasing a commanding 2-0 lead in their WNBA semifinal matchup with the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces when the best-of-five series continues Tuesday in Brooklyn.,Outside of a 3-3 score early in Sunday's eventual 87-77 Game 1 win, New York led Las Vegas wire-to-wi...

Heat's Erik Spoelstra: Jimmy Butler 'needs me, I need him'
Entering their sixth year together, Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra believes a breakthrough in his relationship with Jimmy Butler is imminent. ,That thesis is based almost entirely on longevity and mutual need.,"When you get to that many years together, there's a lot of unspoken understanding," Spoe...