NBA Page 44 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Thunder look to keep pace in race for No. 1 seed vs. Bulls
The Oklahoma City Thunder are in a tight battle for the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs heading into Friday's matchup with the Chicago Bulls at home.,"It's very important and not just in the West, in the whole playoffs," Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. "We needed Game 7 at home against...

Thriving Jayson Tatum leads Celtics into battle vs. Hawks
Jayson Tatum will attempt to take another step forward in his return from surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon when the Boston Celtics try to cool off the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Friday night., ,Tatum turned in what was arguably his best performance of the season during Wednesday's 1...

Cavaliers see good process in bad result entering Heat rematch
The return of small forward Norman Powell to the starting lineup helped the Miami Heat end their five-game losing streak and move into sole possession of eighth place in the Eastern Conference.,A second consecutive road game against the fourth-place Cleveland Cavaliers is next for the Heat on Friday...

Bennedict Mathurin returns as surging Clippers visit Pacers
Looking to take advantage of a golden opportunity to bolster their play-in tournament status, the Los Angeles Clippers begin a two-game Eastern Conference road trip on Friday against the fading Indiana Pacers at Indianapolis.,Los Angeles (37-36) was all but written off in late December after beginni...

Bulls F Jalen Smith (calf), G Jaden Ivey (knee) done for season
Chicago Bulls power forward Jalen Smith and guard Jaden Ivey will miss the rest of the season due to their respective injuries, the team announced Thursday.,Smith aggravated his right calf while playing in just six minutes of Chicago's 157-137 setback to the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday.,He avera...

Pistons host Pelicans, looking to bounce back from rare loss
The Detroit Pistons had their four-game winning streak snapped by the red-hot Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. They'll look to start a new one when they host the lowly New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday.,Detroit dropped a 130-129 overtime thriller at home to the Hawks. Tobias Harris and Jalen Duren both mi...

Doc Rivers defends Bucks' handling of Giannis Antetokounmpo's injury
A day after the National Basketball Players Association criticized the Milwaukee Bucks for their handling of superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and his injury status, coach Doc Rivers on Wednesday defended his organization and the decision to not play his star.,"He's progressing," Rivers told reporters...

NBA roundup: Celtics end Thunder's 12-game winning streak
Jaylen Brown had 31 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to help the Boston Celtics end the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder's 12-game winning streak with a 119-109 victory Wednesday in a game that featured the last two NBA champions.,Jayson Tatum added 19 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for...

Clippers jump out to big lead, hold Raptors at bay
Kawhi Leonard, Darius Garland and Bennedict Mathurin combined for 74 points as the Los Angeles Clippers routed the visiting Toronto Raptors 119-94 on Wednesday. ,Los Angeles (37-36) led nearly wire-to-wire on the way to their third consecutive win, pouncing on Toronto in the first quarter and never ...

Gui Santos' career game helps Warriors rally, extend Nets' skid
Gui Santos scored a career-high 31 points and Brandin Podziemski added 22 as the Golden State Warriors rallied to beat the Brooklyn Nets 109-106 on Wednesday night in San Francisco.,Golden State (35-38) won for the third time in its last 11 games, while Brooklyn (17-56) lost its ninth straight.,Kris...

Rockets rally to force OT, but Wolves win with 15-0 run
Jaden McDaniels scored 25 points on 10-for-17 shooting and the Minnesota Timberwolves stormed back for a 110-108 overtime win over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night in Minneapolis.,Julius Randle added 24 points for Minnesota (45-28), which won for the fourth time in its past five games. Rudy Go...

Trail Blazers hammer hapless Bucks
Scoot Henderson scored 23 points off the bench and the Portland Trail Blazers never trailed in rolling to a 130-99 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.,Deni Avdija recorded 18 points and seven assists and Jerami Grant also scored 18 points as Portland (37-37) won for the six...

Jamal Murray explodes for 53 as Nuggets hold off Mavericks
Jamal Murray scored 33 of his season-high 53 points in the first half, Nikola Jokic had 23 points, 21 rebounds and 19 assists, and the host Denver Nuggets held on to beat the Dallas Mavericks 142-135 on Wednesday night.,Jokic, who has triple-doubles in three straight games, recorded his 6,000th care...

Julian Reese, Wizards best Jazz, end 16-game skid
Julian Reese scored 26 points and collected 17 rebounds to help the Washington Wizards snap a 16-game losing streak with a 133-110 victory over the host Utah Jazz on Wednesday night. ,Will Riley added 19 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Wizards, who avoided a franchise-record 17-game ski...

Another big night for Victor Wembanyama gives Spurs another win
Victor Wembanyama had 19 points, 15 rebounds and seven blocks as the visiting San Antonio Spurs dominated from the opening minutes and posted a wire-to-wire 123-98 victory Wednesday night over the injury-riddled Memphis Grizzlies.,The Spurs (55-18) improved to 23-2 since Feb. 1, the best record in t...

Heat waste 21-point lead, then surge past Cavaliers
Norman Powell scored 19 points and Bam Adebayo collected 17 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, allowing the visiting Miami Heat to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 120-103 after blowing a 21-point lead on Wednesday night.,Tyler Herro added 18 points, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Pelle Larsson each score...

Jaylen Brown (31), Celtics halt Thunder's 12-game win streak
Jaylen Brown had 31 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to help the Boston Celtics end the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder's 12-game winning streak with a 119-109 victory Wednesday in a game that featured the last two NBA champions., ,Jayson Tatum added 19 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists f...

Jalen Johnson, Hawks outlast Pistons to extend hot streak
Jalen Johnson had 27 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds as the streaking Atlanta Hawks edged the host Detroit Pistons in overtime, 130-129, on Wednesday.,CJ McCollum also had 27 points, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker tossed in 21. Dyson Daniels added 16 points and 13 rebounds for Atlanta (41-32),...

Joel Embiid shines in return as 76ers maul Bulls
Joel Embiid scored 35 points and Paul George added 28 in their returns to the lineup as the Philadelphia 76ers rolled past the visiting Chicago Bulls 157-137 on Wednesday night.,Philadelphia welcomed back Embiid (oblique), who had missed the previous 13 games, and George (suspension), who had sat ou...

Luka Doncic, Lakers start fast, cruise past Pacers
Luka Doncic scored 28 of his 43 points in the first half as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Indiana Pacers 137-130 on Wednesday in Indianapolis.,Doncic also had seven assists and six rebounds for Los Angeles (47-26), while Austin Reaves paired 25 points with eight assists.,LeBron James flirted w...