Basketball Page 8 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Lakers rule Luka Doncic out for Game 1 at Thunder
The Los Angeles Lakers will have to face the NBA's top overall seed without their leading scorer Tuesday, as they ruled out Luka Doncic for Game 1 of their second-round series with the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday.,Earlier in the day, coach JJ Redick had declined to provide an update on his super...
Thunder odds-on NBA title favorites as second round begins
Eight teams are left standing in the NBA playoffs, but it's the top overall seed that stands head and shoulders above the field.,The Oklahoma City Thunder are heavy favorites to win their second straight league title as the conference semifinals began Monday night.,At both DraftKings Sportsbook and ...
Thunder not taking Lakers for granted ahead of Game 1
The Oklahoma City Thunder blew out the Los Angeles Lakers twice in the final two weeks of the regular season.,The Thunder won those two games by an average of 39.5 points per game.,But heading into Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series Tuesday in Oklahoma City, the Thunder aren't looki...
WNBA cuts roundup: Sky waive 2025 first-rounder Hailey Van Lith
The Chicago Sky waived 2025 first-round draft pick Hailey Van Lith on Monday.,The 24-year-old point guard averaged 3.5 points and 1.6 assists in 29 games (no starts) as a rookie in 2025.,Van Lith averaged 12.5 points and 4.5 assists in two preseason games for Chicago, which opens the regular season ...
Coaching ties, tired legs in focus as Pistons open semis vs. Cavs
J.B. Bickerstaff spent four-plus years building Cleveland into a contender. Now he gets to try to dismantle it.,Just two days after surviving a Game 7, the top-seeded Detroit Pistons open the Eastern Conference semifinals Tuesday night at home against the fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, the franc...
Bulls hire Hawks senior VP Bryson Graham to lead basketball ops
The Chicago Bulls are turning to Atlanta Hawks senior vice president Bryson Graham to head up their basketball operations.,The Bulls named Graham their executive vice president of basketball operations on Monday, replacing Arturas Karnisovas, who was fired late in the season.,Graham, 39, served as t...
Pistons give coach JB Bickerstaff contract extension
The Detroit Pistons announced Monday that they extended the contract of head coach JB Bickerstaff. Terms of the extension were not disclosed.,The Pistons went 60-22 and secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs this season, their second under Bickerstaff, and became the 15th team to er...
Cloudy Sky: Veteran G Natasha Cloud signs with Chicago
Natasha Cloud, a former WNBA champion and one of the biggest names unsigned in free agency, joined the Chicago Sky on Monday.,The team did not release terms of the deal, but ESPN reported it was a one-year contract for $555,000.,Cloud, 34, enters her 11th WNBA season with her fourth team, and her th...
Spurs aim to keep rolling in West semis as Wolves' chances improve
The San Antonio Spurs look to parlay their power, overall depth and momentum into a victory when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinal series.,Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is on Wednesday in the Alamo City before the series shifts to Minne...
Report: Wolves star Anthony Edwards expected to play Game 1 vs. Spurs
Anthony Edwards has received medical clearance and is expected to play for the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, pending final sign-off after his pregame routine, ESPN reported.,The Timberwolves visit the San Antonio Spurs for Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.,Per ESPN, Edwards was ...
Report: Liberty G Sabrina Ionescu (ankle) out 2 weeks
New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu is out at least two weeks with an ankle injury, the New York Post reported Monday.,An MRI showed the four-time All-Star guard avoided "significant injury" when she rolled her left ankle in Sunday's preseason win at Connecticut, per the report.,Ionescu, 28, playe...
Report: Playing status of Wolves' Anthony Edwards still unclear
Anthony Edwards is eager to play for the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, but he still hasn't been given the green light from medical staff, ESPN reported.,The Timberwolves visit the San Antonio Spurs for Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals. Per ESPN, Edwards was a "significant partic...
Mavericks introduce Masai Ujiri as team president
The Dallas Mavericks hired former Toronto Raptors executive Masai Ujiri as their new team president and alternate governor on Monday.,Ujiri, 55, spent 12 seasons in the Raptors' front office (2013-25) and was the architect of the franchise's first NBA championship in 2018-19.,"The Dallas Mavericks a...
Sky waive 2025 first-rounder G Hailey Van Lith
The Chicago Sky waived 2025 first-round draft pick Hailey Van Lith on Monday.,The 24-year-old point guard averaged 3.5 points and 1.6 assists in 29 games (no starts) as a rookie in 2025.,WNBA teams have until Thursday at 5 p.m. ET to make their final roster cuts before the regular season begins Frid...
Reports: Mavs hiring former Raptors exec Masai Ujiri
The Dallas Mavericks are hiring former Toronto Raptors executive Masai Ujiri as their new team president and alternate governor, multiple outlets reported Monday.,Ujiri, 55, spent 12 seasons in the Raptors' front office (2013-25) and was the architect of the franchise's first NBA championship in 201...
Report: Azzi Fudd to avoid fine for remarks about refs
No. 1 overall draft pick Azzi Fudd reportedly will not be fined for complaining about the officiating on Sunday.,Front Office Sports said the Dallas Wings rookie guard will avoid punishment for her remarks following the preseason win against the Las Vegas Aces.,"Honestly, I'm more confused," the for...
Magic fire Jamahl Mosley after first-round collapse
Head coach Jamahl Mosley was fired by the Magic on Monday, one day after a Game 7 loss to the Detroit Pistons in a first-round series that Orlando led 3-1.,The Magic lost in the first round of the playoffs for the third consecutive season. They had navigated the play-in round to earn the No. 8 seed ...
Jarrett Allen Saves Cavs in Game 7 To Secure Date With Pistons
Jarrett Allen delivered a dominant Game 7 performance to lift the Cavs past the Raptors....
Celtics' Jaylen Brown critical of refs for 'agenda,' calls out 76ers' Joel Embiid
Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown on Sunday criticized officiating in the team's first-round loss to Philadelphia and also pointed at 76ers center Joel Embiid for flopping.,Brown spoke on the streaming platform Twitch on Sunday, a day after the second-seeded Celtics lost Game 7 at home to the seventh...
Cavs use third-quarter surge to best Raptors in Game 7
Jarrett Allen scored 14 of his career playoff-high-tying 22 points in the third quarter and grabbed 19 rebounds, powering the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 114-102 win over the visiting Toronto Raptors in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round series Sunday night.,Fourth-seeded Cleveland, which t...