Reporting Articles - Page 272

The Los Angeles Lakers — back to .500 with six games to play — trotted out their 37th different starting lineup for their short-awaited rematch with the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on Wednesday. But unlike on Sunday, when the Bulls spoiled LeBron James’ return, the Lakers deployed their long-awaited ideal starting five: LeBron, […]

PHILADELPHIA — James Harden returned to the court after a four-game absence caused by Achilles soreness. The Philadelphia 76ers picked up a win over the Dallas Mavericks but the Sixers’ floor general didn’t have a very smooth return overall. Fortunately, he played well enough to help Philly snap a three-game skid. Harden said he felt […]

Patrick Beverley punctuated the Chicago Bulls win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday by converting a hook shot over LeBron James and then, predictably, hitting his former, taller teammate with a “too small” celebration. Pat Bev going with the "too-small" on LeBron: pic.twitter.com/kTL1zV21N5 https://t.co/mN5HsZ1sYb — Michael Corvo (@michaelcorvo_) March 26, 2023 In the rematch […]

“It’s a make-or-miss league.” The phrase so commonly used by Kevin Durant this season has routinely doomed the Brooklyn Nets late in games since trading the all-time great scorer. The new-look Nets held the NBA’s 23rd-ranked 4th-quarter offense over 20 games heading into Wednesday’s matchup vs. the Houston Rockets. However, in a game where Brooklyn […]

PHILADELPHIA — Even as the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Dallas Mavericks to snap their losing streak, a lot of the discussion surrounding Joel Embiid was about his decision to sit out against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets on Monday. The Sixers superstar’s calf injury caught up to him after three games in four days […]

Bill Belichick surprised many people when he said that New England Patriots fans should be optimistic for the 2023 season because of “the last 25 years” on Monday. Belichick clarified his statement to The Boston Globe’s Jim McBride on Wednesday, saying that he was speaking from a fan’s perspective, which was the matter that the […]

The Philadelphia 76ers (50-26) returned home after their road trip and faced the Dallas Mavericks (37-40) in a nationally televised game. The Sixers snapped their three-game losing streak and won 116-108. Let’s break down the Sixers’ win over the Mavs. Sixers player notes: Joel Embiid: 25 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 8-17 FG shooting Embiid […]

The Nets’ lack of depth behind breakout center Nic Claxton has been a frequent talking point this season. Brooklyn ranks 29th in rebounding, allowing 11.4 offensive boards per game. The glaring roster hole had largely been viewed as an indictment of second-year big man Day’Ron Sharpe’s lack of development. The 29th pick in the 2021 […]

The Boston Celtics likely squandered their chances at the top spot in the Eastern Conference after an ugly 130-111 loss to the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night. However, star forward Jayson Tatum doesn’t seem too concerned about Boston’s current rank. After being asked about how worried he was that the Milwaukee Bucks essentially locked up […]

The Philadelphia 76ers have clinched a spot in the 2023 NBA playoffs, marking their sixth consecutive postseason berth. It’s a feat that the franchise hasn’t seen since the days of Dr. J and Moses Malone. The mighty efforts of Joel Embiid, James Harden, and company could finally get the Sixers deep into the postseason. Recent […]

The Golden State Warriors stormed back to beat the New Orleans Pelicans 120-109 at Chase Center on Tuesday night, overcoming a 20-point first-half deficit. Here are three key reactions—with related film and analysis, as always—from the Warriors’ pivotal victory over the Pelicans. Golden State flips the second-half switch The Warriors trailed 63-43 when Brandon Ingram […]

When the New England Patriots let Jakobi Meyers walk in free agency but signed JuJu Smith-Schuster to a similar contract, many people perceived the move as a trade-off between the two players. Bill Belichick didn’t see it that way though. Speaking to reporters at the NFL owners meeting in Arizona, Belichick was stern in saying […]

Pau Gasol, a two-time NBA champion whose No. 16 was retired by the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this month, will be elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Per Woj, Gasol — elected on his first ballot — will join a star-studded 2023 class that includes Becky Hammon, […]

The Golden State Warriors still don’t know when Andrew Wiggins may make his long-awaited return to the team. Just because he’s missing his 20th straight game on Tuesday night due to personal reasons, though, hardly means Wiggins has left basketball completely behind during his absence. Before his team’s pivotal matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans […]

Things are looking up for the Los Angeles Lakers. They’re 11-6 since the All-Star break and briefly reached .500. They’re ninth in Net Rating since the trade deadline. LeBron James is back from injury, and D’Angelo Russell could rejoin the team on Wednesday. Their remaining schedule is relatively favorable. And yet, the 37-38 Lakers — […]

Gary Payton II just can’t catch a break. After making his long-awaited post-trade deadline debut with the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, the veteran guard was a late addition to his team’s injury report for Tuesday’s crucial battle with the New Orleans Pelicans. Payton is currently listed as questionable to play against New Orleans due […]

D’Angelo Russell is listed as probable for the Los Angeles Lakers ahead of their matchup with the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on Wednesday — the first game of a critical five-game road trip. DLo has missed the last two contests with right hip soreness. He’s been considered day-to-day. Russell came out for a […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are listing LeBron James (right foot soreness) as questionable for their rematch with the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday at the United Center. LeBron made his surprising return to action in Sunday’s loss to the Bulls. LeBron was upgraded to questionable a few hours before tip-off then decided to give it a […]

The Philadelphia 76ers’ last westbound trip of the regular season was not kind to them. James Harden didn’t play and Joel Embiid was absent in the final game, a loss to Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. The Sixers have lost three straight games for the first time since early December. But it’s not all […]

LOS ANGELES – With seven games left in the regular season, the Los Angeles Clippers are expected to make a lineup change they hope will help get them on the right track heading into the postseason. According to sources with knowledge of the situation, Nicolas Batum is expected to replace Marcus Morris in the Clippers’ […]

The buzz around one of the most anticipated games of the season died down quickly. The MVP showdown between Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic was canceled when the Philadelphia 76ers (49-26) decided to sit Embiid in their road-trip finalé against the Denver Nuggets (51-24). With James Harden also sidelined, the Sixers made things interesting but […]

Instead of season-ending surgery, LeBron James traveled far and wide for a third opinion on his foot injury and dedicated three sessions per day to returning to the Los Angeles Lakers lineup. According to LeBron, his ramped up ramp-up was motivated by the Lakers’ realistic chance at grabbing the No. 6 seed in the Western […]

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown sent the NBA world into a frenzy last week after giving a noncommittal answer as to where he wants to play in the future. But for now, Brown is focused on getting the Celtics back to where they want to be: the NBA Finals. In a January interview, the 26-year-old […]

The New England Patriots didn’t want inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo to leave this offseason, reportedly giving him an enticing offer to stay while teams requested to interview him for their vacant head coach and defensive coordinator jobs. They also want Mayo to remain in New England for a long time, too. Patriots owner Robert […]

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft gave strong endorsements of the two most key figures in his organization when speaking to reporters at the NFL owners meeting on Monday. First, Kraft expressed confidence in Mac Jones following the quarterback’s rough second season, mentioning the unusual coaching situation he had around him and changes made this […]

The Golden State Warriors were one possession away on Sunday night from winning their two biggest games of the season back-to-back, steadying themselves for a top-six playoff seed in the wild Western Conference. But Kyle Anderson deflected Draymond Green’s pass as the Warriors tried to chew up more clock up one with 16 seconds left, […]

The New York Jets likely will need more salary cap space this offseason to pay for Aaron Rodgers and sign Quinnen Williams to a massive contract extension. But don’t expect them to create room by releasing or trading Carl Lawson. It had been speculated that the Jets could move on from Lawson because they’d save […]

Basketball fans everywhere were anticipating a showdown of two MVP frontrunners with Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers visiting Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. Unfortunately, that is no longer on the table. The Sixers have decided to rule Embiid out due to a calf injury, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. […]

Joel Embiid is in the midst of a fantastic season for the Philadelphia 76ers. The MVP award seems to be his to lose and the Sixers look like a true championship-caliber team. Embiid sat down with Shams Charania of The Athletic to talk about his season, his MVP candidacy and much more. On top of […]

Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George is expected to miss at least two to three weeks after suffering a sprained right knee. After taking a hit from Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort, George avoided significant damage to the major ligaments in his right knee, and a return for the playoffs is not out of […]

The Los Angeles Clippers are set to face DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls at Crypto dotcom Arena on Monday night. The Clippers got superstar forward Kawhi Leonard back this season after he missed the entire 2021-22 season rehabbing his torn right ACL. But as the 2022-23 season continues and Leonard’s workload is closely monitored, […]

The Golden State Warriors wasted some palpable late-season momentum and a perfect opportunity to earn playoff tie-breaker on Sunday, falling to the Minnesota Timberwolves 99-96 at Chase Center. Here are three reactions—with related film and analysis—on the Dubs’ extremely disappointing loss, just their eighth at home this season. Turnovers doom Warriors First things first: Golden […]

If there’s one positive the Brooklyn Nets can take from their 119-106 loss in Orlando Sunday, it’s that Mikal Bridges has the look of a budding star. The breakout forward poured in 44 points, one shy of his career high, on 13-of-22 shooting from the field and 6-of-9 from three. Bridges set career high’s in […]

LeBron James shed light on the right foot tendon injury that sidelined him for 13 games prior to his surprise return to action in the Los Angeles Lakers 118-108 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday. LeBron had not spoken publicly about the foot since exacerbating it exactly four weeks ago, excluding a tweet refuting […]

The Charlotte Hornets swept the season series with the Dallas Mavericks after beating them in two straight games, which might be a little surprising to read for some Hornets and Mavs fans. When a team features Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, who are two of the league’s best offensive talents, you might be in for […]

“Stay ready” has been the motto of the Brooklyn Nets’ bench unit throughout the 2022-23 season. With the ever-changing nature of the roster through suspensions, injuries and a pair of blockbuster trades, that motto has been put to the test. One of the faces at the forefront of the movement has been first-year Net Edmond […]

Joel Embiid may finally be the MVP, becoming the first Philadelphia 76ers superstar to win the award since Allen Iverson. But the Sixers’ big man continues to claim that whichever way the vote falls, it won’t matter to him. Embiid currently leads Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo in an MVP race that is going to […]

The Philadelphia 76ers are really starting to miss James Harden. After two straight losses, both in which their offense suffered mightily, the Sixers are starting to show how much they depend on him. Harden’s playmaking, shot-creating and overall leadership are huge for the Sixers. His skills have helped unlock the best version of Embiid, whose […]

If there was ever a must-win game for the Brooklyn Nets this season, it was Saturday’s matchup in Miami. Brooklyn came into the game on a five-game losing streak that pushed them a half-game back of the Heat to seventh in the Eastern Conference. Miami entered winners of seven of their last 10. The Heat […]