NBA News

The Charlotte Hornets beat Miami in a highly entertaining play-in game the other night, and it sparked a ton of conversation. Some of the themes: Kon Knueppel blew the Rookie of the Year race, the Hornets are in big trouble, and one more we’ll get to in a minute. The Rookie of the Year business is stupid. It’s going to …

The full series schedule for Sixers vs. Celtics in Round 1 of playoffs originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia Playoff basketball is back on the Sixers’ calendar. Following a 24-win nightmare of a 2024-25 season, the Sixers clinched a playoff spot Wednesday night by beating the Magic in the play-in tournament. Advertisement They’re the Eastern Conference’s No. 7 seed and …

The difficulty of guarding an action involving Steph Curry and Draymond Green is the sheer unpredictability of how it will manifest. It’s difficult enough to solve the typical Curry-Green pick-and-roll — playing drop will end up in Curry pulling up around the screen for a rhythm three. Playing a more aggressive form of coverage such as a hedge or outright …

Hornets star LaMelo Ball was fined $35K for his Flagrant 2 foul on Bam Adebayo during Tuesday night’s win over the Heat in the NBA play-in tournament. The incident happened in the second quarter when Ball fell to the floor after taking a shot and swiped at the leg of Adebayo, causing the Heat big man to fall hard to …

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Stephen Curry hit seven 3-pointers while scoring 35 points, holding every fan at Intuit Dome in his thrall with another dazzling display of his unmatched shooting skill. In the fourth quarter of an elimination game, Draymond Green bodied up to Kawhi Leonard and utterly shut down one of the greatest scorers of their generation. Advertisement Curry and …

Pressure usually feels obvious this time of year. You know who it’s on, you know what’s at stake, and you know exactly who’s going to hear about it if things go sideways. This Celtics team is a little different. The expectations are obviously real and earned, but they’re not overwhelming. The core has already proven it can win, the supporting …

INDEPENDENCE — Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson has been asked how James Harden has helped this team since his arrival in early February. He’s spoken at length about how good a passer he is and how skilled he is as a scorer. But there’s one thing that sticks out above all of that — his knowledge of the game …

INGLEWOOD — For one reason or another, neither team inside the Intuit Dome for the Western Conference’s bottom play-in game expected to be there. In the end, a Warriors team decimated by injuries will get another chance at the unlikeliest of playoff berths. On the other side, a Clippers team that started the year 6-21 and surrounded by off-the-court controversy had …

Well, they did it. The Golden State Warriors saved their best for last, ending a three-month run of uninteresting play, and emerging from their first play-in tournament game with one of their most entertaining games of the season. More importantly, they emerged with a win. The Warriors ended the season leaking oil, and faced off in the first round of …

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Curry scored 27 of his 35 points in the second half, Al Horford hit four 3-pointers during Golden State’s electrifying fourth-quarter comeback, and the Warriors advanced in the NBA’s play-in tournament with a 126-121 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night. Curry’s seventh 3-pointer broke a tie with 50.4 seconds to play for …

It all comes down to one game on Friday, one opportunity to keep the season alive. After falling to the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday, the Phoenix Suns are now fighting for their postseason lives. They’re also staring at history. Only two teams in the first five years of the Play-In have lost the 7–8 matchup, but both still advanced …

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points, V.J. Edgecombe added 19 points and 11 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers weathered the absence of Joel Embiid to beat the Orlando Magic 109-97 on Wednesday night and secure the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Sixers moved on to a first-round series that begins Sunday at Boston. Advertisement …

The Golden State Warriors injury mired, frustrating season isn’t over yet. Despite a 13-point fourth quarter deficit, the Dubs defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 126-121 and will play the Phoenix Suns for the eighth-seed in the Western Conference. It would be easy to argue that the Clippers were the better team on Wednesday night, leading for most of the game. …

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Curry hit seven 3-pointers while scoring 35 points, holding every fan at Intuit Dome in his thrall with another dazzling display of his unmatched shooting skill. In the fourth quarter of an elimination game, Draymond Green bodied up to Kawhi Leonard and utterly shut down one of the greatest scorers of their generation. Advertisement Curry …

It was do or die Wednesday night at Intuit Dome, and the Clippers did not do enough to keep their season alive, blowing a 13-point lead early in the fourth quarter and losing to the Golden State Warriors, 126-121. Having rebounded from a franchise-worst 6-21 start to earn the next-to-last berth in the NBA play-in tournament, coach Tyronn Lue’s resilient …

The first round of the NBA Play-In Tournament is a wrap, which means the playoff field is nearly set. We now know who the No. 7 seeds will be in both the Eastern and Western Conferences: the Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers, respectively. Advertisement Now, the final two games of the Play-In, which will be Friday, April 17, will …

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — At the start of the fourth quarter, in 2:33 without Stephen Curry or Kawhi Leonard on the court, the Clippers were +4, stretching their lead over the Warriors to as much as 13. It didn’t feel like enough — Stephen Curry was starting to heat up. Advertisement It wasn’t. Curry scored 27 of his 35 points in …

Chris Paul’s return to the L.A. Clippers didn’t go the way he expected. He shared his reaction after his former team’s disappointing performance in the NBA Play-In Tournament on Wednesday, April 15. The Clippers parted ways with the 40-year-old guard in December 2025, but Paul clearly has kept his eyes on the team in the months that followed. Advertisement He …

The Los Angeles Clippers’ season is over. There’s one guy in particular who seems quite happy about that. Chris Paul, the twice-over former Clipper who retired from the NBA after an acrimonious divorce with the team during the season, responded to the team’s 126-121 loss to the Golden State Warriors in the play-in tournament on Wednesday with a single meme. …

Alright, round four. The first three have just gone so well. With their win over the Orlando Magic in the Play-In tournament, the Sixers’ 2026 playoff position is finally set in stone. They will be the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference and will take on the second-seeded Boston Celtics. Advertisement Now that they officially have a set opponent and …

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tyrese Maxey and his 76ers teammates sent feelers out to Joel Embiid about the recovering All-Star center attending the play-in game. Embiid had been absent since his emergency appendectomy last week and the Sixers thought it would lift his spirits if he was part of their playoff push. Unsure of his answer hours ahead of tipoff Wednesday …

The NBA fined Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball $35,000 and assessed a Flagrant Foul 2 on Wednesday, April 15, for the play that injured Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo in the teams’ April 14 Play-In Tournament game. Ball seemingly tripped Adebayo — the league called it “unnecessary and reckless contact” — during the second quarter of Tuesday night’s game, causing …

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Referee Ben Taylor left the play-in tournament game between the Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Clippers with an injury on Wednesday night. Taylor walked stiffly off the court and went up the tunnel behind one basket at Intuit Dome with 8:51 left in the third quarter. He was replaced by alternate referee Sean Corbin …

The worst injury of Wednesday’s NBA play-in tournament game between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers might have been to a ref. Veteran official Ben Taylor exited the game in the third quarter with an apparent injury, limping off the court in some discomfort. Alternate ref Sean Corbin entered the game to replace him after a brief break …

Golden State Warriors fans may be able to breathe a sigh of relief. With 2:39 to play in the first quarter of Golden State’s Play-In Tournament game Wednesday, April 15 against the Los Angeles Clippers, All-Star point guard Stephen Curry went into the locker room with a towel draped over his head. Advertisement Curry has been dealing with lingering injuries …