NBA

2:00 AM ET NBA Insiders Playoff basketball is the NBA’s reason for being. It’s where players build their legends, various stakeholders cash in on revenue potential and fans record memories. It’s why the NBA went to extremes to deliver the postseason, investing more than $150 million in a bubble. The road there wasn’t without its

9:35 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Boston Celtics lost forward Gordon Hayward to a right ankle sprain in the fourth quarter of their 109-101 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. “Sprained ankle,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens said afterward. “Don’t know the severity, but he’s clearly in pain, and it looked like

12:00 PM ET Marc J. Spears Philadelphia 76ers general manager Elton Brand is ecstatic that team ownership, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, is pledging $20 million over the next five years to invest in the cities where its teams work and live in hopes of fighting for equality and against systemic racism. HBSE, owners of

8:02 PM ET Thanks to the Los Angeles Lakers‘ struggles in the bubble, there is no clear-cut favorite to win the NBA championship entering the playoffs, for a change. Some sportsbooks have the Milwaukee Bucks as the team to beat, while other bookmakers still have the Lakers pegged as the favorites, and in Las Vegas,

Aug 14, 2020 After 66 scrimmages, 88 seeding games, one Play-In — and plenty of fishing — the matchups for the 2020 NBA playoffs are finally set. And in an unprecedented atmosphere that could negate the benefits of home-court advantage, we could be in for another wild two months inside Disney’s ESPN Wide World of

7:15 AM ET The good news for the Los Angeles Lakers is they are the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference playoffs, the first time they’ve earned pole position in a decade and an honorable accomplishment after a traumatic season. The bad news is they appear to have won the least valuable No. 1

8:00 PM ET LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — After capping his rookie campaign with a season-best 35 points in a 126-122 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA’s first play-in tournament, Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant revealed he was playing hurt. “For the past four games, since the [Toronto] Raptors game, I was

6:03 PM ET Attention is the utmost compliment in public life, and Damian Lillard has received plenty of it over the past week. In his Portland Trail Blazers‘ win-or-go-home squeaker on Thursday night, the Brooklyn Nets threw two bodies at Lillard before he even crossed half court. It seemed the most sensible strategy after Lillard

12:28 PM ET The New Orleans Pelicans dismissed coach Alvin Gentry, sources told ESPN on Saturday morning. After a disappointing performance in the NBA’s Orlando restart, the franchise moved quickly on Gentry’s removal. Gentry had one year left on his contract. The Pelicans move into the coaching marketplace with the Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls.

11:29 PM ET NBA Insiders Saturday’s play-in game (2:30 p.m. ET, ABC) between the Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies is the rare NBA win-or-go-home contest, at least for the Grizzlies. If Memphis wins on Saturday, the rematch is Sunday (4:30 p.m. ET, ESPN), with the winner advancing to the NBA playoffs to face the

6:38 PM ET Vlade Divac has stepped down as general manager of the Sacramento Kings and Joe Dumars has assumed the role of the team’s interim executive vice president of basketball operations, the team announced Friday. Divac’s exit came a day after the Kings concluded bubble play with a 136-122 win against the Lakers. They

7:22 AM ET Here is one more batch of 10 things — actually, 12 things — I like and don’t like as we reach the end of seeding games during the strangest season in NBA history. 1. Michael Porter Jr. and math Porter has been the breakout star of the bubble, averaging 22 points on

11:00 AM ET All the scenarios, all the magic numbers, all the scoreboard watching — it’s all getting settled on Thursday. Here is where things stand as four teams battle for two spots in this weekend’s Western Conference play-in: Portland Trail Blazers: win and they’re in (as the No. 8 seed). Memphis Grizzlies: win and

2:07 PM ET Andrew LopezESPN For New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson, it’s time to turn the page to next season and focus on getting better — with his game and his body. “I’ll talk to my coaches and see what I need to do better from their point of view,” Williamson said Thursday morning.

7:10 AM ET NBA Insiders Thursday is the biggest day of the NBA restart, as we reach the conclusion of the red-hot Western Conference play-in battle. The Portland Trail Blazers, Memphis Grizzlies, San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns will all be in action, and only two will advance to face off on Saturday. We asked

11:30 PM ET Before the NBA season restarted, the league decided that the 88 seeding games at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex would not count toward season-long awards voting this year. Then on Tuesday the league announced that it would name an MVP and All-NBA teams for the restart games before the playoffs begin.

5:28 PM ET ESPN News Services LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Giannis Antetokounmpo has been suspended for Milwaukee‘s final game of the regular season, handed a one-game penalty Wednesday for headbutting Washington‘s Moe Wagner. It’s unknown if Antetokounmpo would have played in Thursday’s game against Memphis anyway, given that the Bucks have already secured the

10:54 AM ET LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – As the NBA prepares for the arrival of team guests into The Bubble for the start of the conference semifinals this month, the league is requiring players provide proof of “longstanding relationships” with non-family members, according to a memo obtained by ESPN. The NBA and National Basketball