DENVER (AP) — The Denver Nuggets had all the ingredients for an NBA Finals run this season — Nikola Jokic's all-around greatness, Jamal Murray's sweet ball handling, Michael Porter Jr.'s board crashing and arc accuracy, Aaron Gordon's above-the-rim brilliance.
Bucks finalizing deal to make Raptors’ Adrian Griffin their head coach, AP source says
May 27, 2023 GMTMILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Bucks are finalizing a deal to make Adrian Griffin their head coach after he spent the last five seasons as a Toronto Raptors assistant, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.
Chicago plays Dallas for cross-conference game
May 27, 2023 GMTDallas Wings (1-0, 1-0 Western Conference) at Chicago Sky (2-0, 0-1 Eastern Conference)
Chicago; Sunday, 6 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Chicago faces Dallas in non-conference play.
Idle Nuggets hold light practice, waiting for Celts and Heat to decide NBA Finals foe
May 26, 2023 GMTDENVER (AP) — Denver Nuggets guard Bruce Brown has been using the long layoff before the start of the NBA Finals to work on his game — his golf game.
A list of the 15 teams that forced at least a Game 6 in a best-of-seven NBA playoff series after dropping the first three games:
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1947 BAA Semifinals: Washington Capitols trailed Chicago Stags 3-0, lost in six.
MIAMI (AP) — Maybe Kevin Garnett was right. Maybe, as he screamed in celebration of Boston’s 2008 NBA championship, anything truly is possible.
Connecticut visits New York after Stewart’s 45-point game
May 26, 2023 GMTConnecticut Sun (3-0, 3-0 Eastern Conference) at New York Liberty (1-1, 1-1 Eastern Conference)
New York; Saturday, 1 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: New York plays the Connecticut Sun after Breanna Stewart scored 45 points in the New York Liberty's 90-73 win over the Indiana Fever.
Los Angeles to visit Las Vegas Saturday
May 26, 2023 GMTLos Angeles Sparks (1-0, 1-1 Western Conference) at Las Vegas Aces (1-0, 2-0 Western Conference)
Las Vegas; Saturday, 9 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: The Las Vegas Aces host the Los Angeles Sparks.
Miami looks to clinch conference finals in game 6
May 26, 2023 GMTBoston Celtics (57-25, second in the Eastern Conference) vs. Miami Heat (44-38, eighth in the Eastern Conference)
Miami; Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Heat -3; over/under is 211
BOSTON (AP) — The Miami Heat will start Kyle Lowry at point guard against the Celtics in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals Thursday after starter Gabe Vincent was ruled out with a sprained left ankle.
DENVER (AP) — It took 3,787 regular-season games and 29 trips to the playoffs, countless ripoffs of rainbow uniforms and even more ‘yeah, buts’ than any city should have to stomach. Finally, 47 seasons into an entertaining, often frustrating and almost always overlooked journey in the NBA, Denver is at the center of the basketball world.
Las Vegas visits Los Angeles after Young’s 23-point performance
May 24, 2023 GMTLas Vegas Aces (1-0, 1-0 Western Conference) at Los Angeles Sparks (1-0, 1-0 Western Conference)
Los Angeles; Thursday, 10 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Las Vegas visits the Los Angeles Sparks after Jackie Young scored 23 points in the Aces' 105-64 victory over the Seattle Storm.
MIAMI (AP) — Down nine early in the third quarter, down 3-0 in the series, the Boston Celtics knew their season was completely on the brink.
Three minutes later, everything looked different.
Jayson Tatum had 33 points and 11 rebounds, Jaylen Brown added 17 points and the Celtics staved off elimination in the Eastern Conference finals by running away in the second half to beat the Miami Heat 116-99 in Game 4 on Tuesday night.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers hope LeBron James will decide to continue his career after he recovers from the difficult end to their season.
NEW YORK (AP) — Miami's Jimmy Butler was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Tuesday for not participating in required media availability after Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.
Butler did not talk to reporters following the Heat's 128-102 victory on Sunday that gave them a 3-0 lead over the Boston Celtics.
NEW YORK (AP) — Golden State’s Stephen Curry was selected as this season’s Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion, the NBA announced Tuesday.
The league will donate $100,000 on Curry’s behalf to the University of San Francisco Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James questioned retirement after his Lakers were swept by the Denver Nuggets despite the highest-scoring postseason half of James' matchless NBA career.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Denver Nuggets played with disruption on their minds in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals.
Everybody on that tight-knit bench Monday night seemed to know their team had never reached the NBA Finals, had never swept a playoff opponent and had never beaten the Los Angeles Lakers in a postseason series.
Jokic leads Denver Nuggets past LeBron’s Lakers 113-111, into their first NBA Finals
May 23, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Nikola Jokic is a player unlike almost anything the NBA has ever seen, and now he's taking his Denver Nuggets somewhere they've never been.
Jokic had 30 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists, and the Nuggets advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time in team history Monday night, sweeping the Western Conference finals with a 113-111 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Celtics look to pull off the impossible, as Heat stand on brink of making NBA Finals
May 23, 2023 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Blown out in Game 3, facing elimination in Game 4, tasked with engineering the sort of comeback that no team in their league has ever pulled off before.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The chants of fans in Florida drowned out the public-address announcer at the end of the game Monday night, making it impossible to hear his call of the first star of the game.
Tuesday’s Time Schedule
May 23, 2023 GMTAll Times EST
Carmelo Anthony retires from NBA, after 19-year career, NCAA title, 3 Olympic gold medals
May 22, 2023 GMTCarmelo Anthony, the star forward who led Syracuse to an NCAA championship in his lone college season and went on to spend 19 years in the NBA, announced his retirement on Monday.
Washington hosts Connecticut following Bonner’s 21-point game
May 22, 2023 GMTConnecticut Sun (2-0, 2-0 Eastern Conference) at Washington Mystics (1-1, 1-1 Eastern Conference)
Washington; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Connecticut visits the Washington Mystics after DeWanna Bonner scored 21 points in the Sun's 80-74 win over the Washington Mystics.
Miami aims to clinch conference finals in game 4
May 22, 2023 GMTBoston Celtics (57-25, second in the Eastern Conference) vs. Miami Heat (44-38, eighth in the Eastern Conference)
Miami; Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Heat -1.5; over/under is 215.5
MIAMI (AP) — Erik Spoelstra had his team fully expecting that Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals would be extremely difficult, that the Miami Heat were going to have to take the best shot that a desperate bunch of Boston Celtics could muster.
Monday’s Time Schedule
May 22, 2023 GMTAll Times EDT
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — When the Denver Nuggets faced the most crucial stretch of the biggest road game in franchise history, Nikola Jokic took over both on the floor and in the huddle.
The two-time MVP decided he would run a two-man, pick-and-roll offense with Jamal Murray late in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals on Saturday night, and Jokic came through with a 15-point fourth quarter.
MIAMI (AP) — Jimmy Butler is Miami’s leader this postseason in points, minutes, assists and steals per game. He’s the sommelier at team dinners. He’s the barista when it’s time for coffee.
Adebayo and the Heat host Boston with 2-0 series lead
May 20, 2023 GMTBoston Celtics (57-25, second in the Eastern Conference) vs. Miami Heat (44-38, eighth in the Eastern Conference)
Miami; Sunday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Heat -3; over/under is 214
Celtics pay price for Williams dust up, Tatum’s cold finish in East finals Game 2 loss
May 20, 2023 GMTBOSTON (AP) — Grant Williams poked Jimmy Butler, Jayson Tatum went cold again in the fourth quarter and the Boston Celtics are staring at a 2-0 deficit in the Eastern Conference finals.
Throughout the season, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla has trumpeted his team's ability to respond with angry resilience following poor outings.
BOSTON (AP) — Jimmy Butler went forehead-to-forehead with the Boston Celtics, and the Heat are heading back to Miami with an opportunity to advance to the NBA Finals.
Butler scored 27 points, hitting back-to-back buckets to tie the game and give Miami the lead, and the eighth-seeded Heat left Boston with a 111-105 victory Friday night and a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.
Weeekend Time Schedule
May 20, 2023 GMTAll Times EDT
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Although the Los Angeles Lakers’ late-season transformation is one of this NBA season’s best stories, LeBron James and his teammates finally appear to be running out of steam in the Western Conference finals.
Sports on TV for May 22-28
May 19, 2023 GMTAdv20
Denver takes 2-0 lead into game 3 against Los Angeles
May 19, 2023 GMTDenver Nuggets (53-29, first in the Western Conference) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (43-39, seventh in the Western Conference)
Los Angeles; Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Lakers -5.5; over/under is 223.5
Friday’s Time Schedule
May 19, 2023 GMTAll Times EDT
CHICAGO (AP) — Brandon Miller was a little more than three weeks from being born when LeBron James made his NBA debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003.
Two decades later, James is still near the top of the league Miller is about to enter.
Miami takes 1-0 lead into game 2 against Boston
May 18, 2023 GMTMiami Heat (44-38, eighth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Boston Celtics (57-25, second in the Eastern Conference)
Boston; Friday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Celtics -9; over/under is 215.5
Thursday’s Time Schedule
May 18, 2023 GMTAll Times EDT
Ja Morant spoke out Tuesday night about his latest troubles, three days after the Memphis guard apparently held a firearm again while being broadcast on social media and was suspended by the Grizzlies from all team activities.
CHICAGO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama is set to follow in the footsteps of David Robinson and Tim Duncan, and the San Antonio Spurs are ready to welcome the French phenom.
Sports on TV for May 22-28
May 17, 2023 GMTAdv20
The NBA’s oldest coach. The NBA’s newest superstar.
In an instant, the fortunes of the San Antonio Spurs changed in a big way. Victor Wembanyama is on his way to the NBA, and the coaching wins leader in Gregg Popovich will be waiting for him.
Star-studded crowd watches Victor Wembanyama turn it on late, hours before NBA draft lottery
May 17, 2023 GMTPARIS (AP) — Hours before finding out his likely destination in the NBA, Victor Wembanyama drew a star-studded crowd in his last regular-season game in France and delivered another game-winning performance in the fourth quarter.
Denver hosts Los Angeles with 1-0 series lead
May 17, 2023 GMTLos Angeles Lakers (43-39, seventh in the Western Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (53-29, first in the Western Conference)
Denver; Thursday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Nuggets -5.5; over/under is 226.5
Nikola Jokic leads Nuggets past Lakers 132-126 in West opener
May 17, 2023 GMTDENVER (AP) — Denver Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers the last time these teams met in the Western Conference finals in the 2020 NBA bubble.
So, what similarities does he see between LeBron James and Nikola Jokic?
The Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes has a winner. It's the San Antonio Spurs.
The NBA draft lottery was Tuesday night in Chicago and 14 teams had hope that the ping-pong balls will bounce their way, giving them the No.
NBA Draft Lottery Results
May 17, 2023 GMT1. San Antonioo Spurs
MIAMI (AP) — Miami’s Erik Spoelstra and Denver’s Michael Malone are two of the four NBA coaches to have spent at least eight years with their current team.
They know how rare that is — especially as the league's coaching changes mount.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Doc Rivers' penchant for playoff collapses and second-round exits cost him his coaching job with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 76ers fired Rivers on Tuesday following a third straight exit in the second round of the playoffs, and the second time over that span he lost a series lead and a Game 7.
Recent beasts of the East, Heat and Celtics ready for latest conference finals showdown
May 16, 2023 GMTBOSTON (AP) — From the pandemic to the play-in tournament, not much has kept the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat from crossing paths in the Eastern Conference finals recently.
When they tip off Game 1 of their latest playoffs pairing on Wednesday night, it will mark the third East finals matchup between Miami and Boston in the last four seasons and the second straight after Boston prevailed in seven games last spring.
Preview capsule for the Heat-Celtics Eastern Conference finals
May 16, 2023 GMTPreview capsule for the Boston-Miami Eastern Conference finals series that starts Wednesday:
No. 2 BOSTON CELTICS (57-25, 8-5) vs. No. 8 MIAMI HEAT (44-38, 8-3)
DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Stars coach Pete DeBoer pulled his goalie twice in seven games in the Western Conference semifinals against Seattle.
Jake Oettinger didn't take either move as a sign of panic.
Boston hosts Miami to open Eastern Conference finals
May 16, 2023 GMTMiami Heat (44-38, eighth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Boston Celtics (57-25, second in the Eastern Conference)
Boston; Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Celtics -8.5; over/under is 210.5
Tuesday’s Time Schedule
May 16, 2023 GMTAll Times EDT