Basketball Page 41 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Reports: Kelsey Mitchell, Fever agree to $1.4M 'supermax' deal
Kelsey Mitchell carried the injury-ravaged Fever last season, and now Indiana is adding freight in the form of a landmark contract worth $1.4 million for the 2026 season, according to reports by ESPN and The Athletic.,Mitchell and the Fever, the only franchise she has played for since entering the l...

No return timeline for 76ers' Joel Embiid (appendix) after hospital release
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid was released from the hospital Friday after undergoing a successful appendectomy and is returning to Philadelphia, the team announced.,The team added that Embiid's surgical recovery will be managed by team physicians in consultation with his surgeon and a timeli...

Report: Aces finalizing 3-year deal with G Jewell Loyd
Three-time WNBA champion and six-time All-Star guard Jewell Loyd is close to signing a three-year contract with the Las Vegas Aces, ESPN reported on Friday.,Financial terms were not disclosed in the report.,Loyd, 32, played in a career-best 44 games in 2025 during her first season with Las Vegas, av...

Heat waive Terry Rozier, months after federal indictment
Heat guard Terry Rozier was waived on Friday, months after he was indicted for an alleged role in an illegal gambling ring.,Rozier, 32, pleaded not guilty in December to conspiracy charges involving wire fraud and money laundering. His contract was set to expire and he has not played in a game for t...

Sales of Dream tickets soar after Angel Reese acquisition
The Atlanta Dream's acquisition this week of Angel Reese in a trade with the Chicago Sky sent ticket sales soaring.,StubHub posted this on social media Thursday: ,"Atlanta Dream ticket demand spiked 15x after trading for Angel Reese, the largest single day spike in franchise history," read the messa...

Lakers looking up ahead of meeting vs. Suns
The Los Angeles Lakers continue pursuit of the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference when they host the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.,Los Angeles (51-29) is tied for fourth in the West with the Houston Rockets, with the Denver Nuggets (52-28) holding third with two games left in the regular season.,D...

Warriors hope to add reinforcements vs. Kings
The Golden State Warriors could have a few key players back in the lineup on Friday night when they visit the Sacramento Kings.,Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he hopes to have Stephen Curry, Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis available against Sacramento.,The Warriors (37-43) will face the Kings (21-...

Health management for playoffs big concern as T-Wolves visit Rockets
The Houston Rockets' best-laid plans to extend their current winning streak into the playoffs while simultaneously easing the workload on their starters took a bit of a detour on Thursday.,The Rockets nearly coughed up a 28-point lead against the Philadelphia 76ers before holding on for a 113-102 vi...

Giannis Antetokounmpo still sidelined; Bucks, Nets playing out season
The Milwaukee Bucks will wrap up their home slate this season when they face the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night in a rematch of a game earlier this week., ,It will not be a potential final sendoff for Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee, as the superstar already has been ruled out for the game because...

Raptors in must-win game vs. Knicks as they work to avoid play-in
It's been four long years since the Toronto Raptors competed in the postseason. To avoid a potential Eastern Conference play-in slot, the Raptors can't lose to a team that has owned them for nearly as long.,Toronto (45-35), which just beat Miami twice in three days at home, travels to New York to ta...

Magic eager to continue winning ways in encounter vs. Bulls
The Orlando Magic have climbed the Eastern Conference standings and have a chance to avoid the play-in tournament thanks to a late-season surge.,Orlando enters Friday night's visit to the Chicago Bulls on a four-game winning streak, its second-longest run of the season.,Magic coach Jamahl Mosley use...

Without star Joel Embiid, Sixers set to visit Pacers
With an unfortunate development for star Joel Embiid looming over them, the Philadelphia 76ers will try to pull out of a three-game slide when they meet the Indiana Pacers on Friday night in Indianapolis. ,Philadelphia (43-37) learned that the former NBA MVP needed an appendectomy on Thursday before...

Celtics vie to secure East's No. 2 seed in clash vs. Pelicans
The Boston Celtics will have another chance to secure the No. 2 seed for the Eastern Conference playoffs when they host the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night.,Boston (54-26) could have clinched second place by beating New York on Thursday night, but the Knicks scored nine of the final 11 points t...
Why the Tar Heels Made a $50M Gamble on Michael Malone
The North Carolina Tar Heels hired Michael Malone as their next men's basketball coach. Here's why they took a massive swing at a man who has never coached college hoops....
Why the Cavaliers Are Done Playing the Seeding Game in the East
The Cleveland Cavaliers are taking a different approach to playoff seeding this year—here’s why focusing on culture over matchups could pay off....

'Outclassed' Heat searching for answers entering matchup vs. NBA-worst Wizards
The Miami Heat will play in the postseason but are struggling.,Miami, which will visit the Washington Wizards on Friday night, has lost 10 of its past 13 games. That stretch includes a 128-114 home loss on Thursday night to a Toronto Raptors squad that is 4-0 against the Heat this season.,All that l...

NBA roundup: Knicks top Celtics to extend home win streak to 6
Josh Hart had 26 points and Jalen Brunson added 25 points and 10 assists as the New York Knicks extended their home winning streak to six games by beating the visiting Boston Celtics 112-106 on Thursday.,Boston was within 109-106 after a Nikola Vucevic basket with 35.6 seconds left, but a Hart 3-poi...

Kevin Durant scores 29 as Rockets hold off 76ers for 8th straight win
Kevin Durant scored a game-high 29 points and drilled a critical late 3-pointer that helped the host Houston Rockets fend off the hard-charging Philadelphia 76ers 113-102 on Thursday.,The Rockets extended their winning streak to eight games but had to sweat out the final minutes. The 76ers (43-37) s...

LeBron James dazzles in Lakers' win over Warriors
LeBron James tallied 26 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers snapped a three-game losing streak with a 119-103 win over the Golden State Warriors on Thursday in San Francisco.,Deandre Ayton scored 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting and Jake LaRavia added 16 points for the Laker...

$1 million athlete: Jackie Young, Aces reportedly agree to historic deal
All-Star guard Jackie Young and the Las Vegas Aces are close to agreeing on a one-year deal, according to a Thursday report from ESPN. The deal is expected to be worth $1.19 million, the maximum amount for players not eligible for the WNBA's max contract of $1.4 million.,That number would make Young...