NBA News

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Nacho Elvira will head into the final day of the Dubai Invitational with a two-shot lead after a 3-under 68 in Saturday’s third round, while Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry also remained in contention. Elvira started the day tied for the lead with Lowry and started slowly with six pars and a bogey on …

LONDON (AP) — There’s a “good chance” that Memphis guard Ja Morant will return from a calf injury to play against the Orlando Magic in London, Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo said Saturday. The two-time All-Star missed the first of the two-game NBA Europe series when the Magic beat the Grizzlies 118-111 in the NBA’s first regular-season game in Germany. Advertisement …

YANBU, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Luciano Benavides exploited a navigation blunder by Ricky Brabec minutes from the finish of the Dakar Rally to sensationally win the motorbike title on Saturday by two seconds — the smallest margin ever. Meanwhile, Nasser Al-Attiyah safely secured his sixth car title on the 13th and final stage, a flat-out 105-kilometer sprint along the Red …

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The Australian Open’s first formal opening ceremony became the Roger Federer show on the eve of the season-opening major. There was Crowded House, the band, playing a set of four hits. There was a full house — a capacity crowd in the 15,000-seat stadium. Advertisement Rod Laver, the great Australian player of Grand Slam fame, was …

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Domantas Sabonis scored 13 points in his return from a knee injury, Russell Westbrook had 26 and the Sacramento Kings beat the Washington Wizards 128-115 on Friday night for their fourth straight victory. Sabonis returned after missing 27 games because of a partially torn meniscus in his left knee. The three-time All-Star forward/center came off the …

LONDON (AP) — European basketball often is a hot mess of passionate fandom, heated rivalries and financial problems. Holding some powerful fiefdoms together is the EuroLeague. It’s not thrilled about the NBA’s plans to create a new competition on the continent. Advertisement It’s not concerned, either. “We’ve only heard the plan or the fireworks of how amazing it will be, …

NEW YORK (AP) — New York Rangers general manager Chris Drury shared a letter with fans saying the franchise feels their disappointment. Drury wrote on Friday that he plans to “retool” by possibly trading established players. Advertisement Coming off an underachieving this season and missing the playoffs last year, the Rangers are the only team with a losing record in …

PISA, Italy (AP) — Second-to-last Pisa scored only its second home goal of the season with three minutes left to tie high-flying Atalanta 1-1 and record a Serie A-high 11th draw on Friday. Pisa had the better of a dour match but it had scored only once in eight home matches this season and rarely threatened to increase that meager …

MIAMI (AP) — The Power 4 conference that didn’t get its champion into the College Football Playoff has a team that tied for second playing in the CFP’s national title game. So much for the demise of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Advertisement The league that looked most vulnerable a few short years ago when the latest round of realignment shook …

Miami plays Indiana in the College Football Playoff championship game on Monday night, with BetMGM Sportsbook listing Indiana as an 8.5-point favorite as the weekend arrived. Will it be a blowout? The top-seeded Hoosiers (15-0) have beaten Alabama (38-3) and Oregon (56-22) in the CFP as they pursue the program’s first championship. That’s a winning margin of 34.5 points. Advertisement …

HOUSTON (AP) — Asked how he’d describe Houston’s pass rush to someone who hasn’t seen the Texans play before, coach DeMeco Ryans took a few seconds before landing on an answer. “It’s like four Tasmanian devils just wrecking everything that’s in front of them. That’s how I look at our guys,” Ryans said. “They are fast. They are physical. The …

It was 40 years ago this week that the United States first officially paused to remember and celebrate the life and achievements of Martin Luther King Jr. with a day in his honor. On that first Martin Luther King Jr. Day, in the city where King was born, Dominique Wilkins and the Atlanta Hawks took to court as part of …

The gasps from the crowd at Crypto.com Arena — a mix of shock from Lakers fans and anticipation from fans rooting for the local hero — grew each time LaMelo Ball pulled up from seemingly more and more audacious spots on the court. The Charlotte Hornets star guard held three fingers to his bicep each time he splashed a shot …

The NBA has discussed its “vision” for a proposed European basketball league with Real Madrid and other Spanish clubs, says commissioner Adam Silver. Initial plans for ‘NBA Europe’, starting in 2027, are for 10 to 12 set franchises that would stay in the league on an annual basis. Advertisement Silver said the idea would be to mix established European teams …

HOUSTON — By the time the Oklahoma City Thunder drilled their third triple in the span of a 60-second early fourth quarter stretch, Rockets head coach Ime Udoka, livid from his team’s compounding mistakes, stormed the court heading straight for Reed Sheppard. Sheppard, who was the culprit for two of the three wide-open looks — a mixup in coverage and …

Steve Kerr confident Jonathan Kuminga’s trade demand won’t distract the Warriors originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area SAN FRANCISCO – Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga became trade eligible Thursday, and to state the obvious, he wants a new NBA team to call home. Advertisement The fifth-year pro has demanded a trade, league sources confirmed Thursday to NBC Sports Bay Area. …

Klay Thompson will someday enter the Hall of Fame as one of the greatest 3-point shooters the game has ever seen. On Thursday night, with a first-quarter 3, Klay Thompson moved past Damian Lillard to fourth on the all-time 3-point made list. Thompson trails Stephen Curry, James Harden and Ray Allen on the all-time list. Advertisement Thompson kept piling up …

When NBC was preparing for its return to NBA broadcasting, the network’s biggest win was arguably catching one of the white whales of sports media: Michael Jordan. The six-time NBA champion and billionaire has been a rarity on broadcasts since his retirement, which made it a coup when NBC said he would be working as a “special contributor” this season. …

Jalen Brunson is listed as out on Thursday night when the Knicks travel to the Bay Area for their one game at the Chase Center this season against the Warriors. That comes one day after Brunson tweaked his ankle five minutes into the game against the Kings. He went back to the locker room, not to return the rest of …

With just a few weeks until the Feb. 5 trade deadline, there is a lot of trade talk smoke but a few fires as well. Here is the latest on some of the key names. Jonathan Kuminga As of today (Jan. 15), Jonathan Kuminga can be traded — and he has demanded as much, reports Shams Charania and Anthony Slater …

You don’t need me to tell you that Victor Wembanyama is a force defensively. There is a visual, visceral loudness to what Wemby brings to the table that can be seen by many. The question to me is: What are opposing teams trying to do about Wemby? One of my favorite subplots is watching as announcers talk about the “Wemby …

Sources: Jonathan Kuminga demanding Warriors trade on first day of eligibility originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area Jonathan Kuminga, unsurprisingly, wants out. The Warriors’ young forward is demanding a trade from the team, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson confirmed Thursday morning, citing league sources, after ESPN’s Anthony Slater and Shams Charania first reported the news. Kuminga, who signed …

Welcome to the Fantasy Basketball Minutes Report. Every week, I will review each team’s updated minutes per game to see which players are seeing the court more or less than in previous weeks. With this information in hand, I’ll try to discuss any relevant fantasy risers or fallers; players who we should be adding off waivers or removing from our …

Midway through the third quarter of the Mavericks’ 119-108 loss to the Nuggets on Wednesday, rookie Cooper Flagg rolled his ankle and hobbled off the court. He was unable to return to the game and didn’t speak to the press after the game either, as the team announced that he had suffered a right ankle sprain. Mavericks head coach Jason …

We’re three weeks from the Feb. 5 NBA Trade Deadline, and the smoke is getting thicker around some major names. Let’s cut through the noise and focus on what actually matters for your fantasy basketball roster. Ja Morant: They Don’t Want You to Ball Memphis is entertaining offers for its two-time All-Star, and ESPN’s Shams Charania reports that “Miami, Sacramento …