LOS ANGELES — About 90 minutes before tipoff, Dalton Knecht approached the assistant coach sitting on the bench of the Los Angeles Lakers. The coach who once played menacing defense on the court and later strode the sideline with a steely stare, now seems more relaxed as the gray and white specks have shown up in his goatee.

“What up O.G.!?...Read more

The Memphis Grizzlies are one of the more prideful teams in the NBA. They had already lost to the Nets twice this season, once by 13 points at FedExForum on Oct. 30 and again by two points at Barclays Center on Nov. 4., so you knew their third meeting with Brooklyn in Memphis on Friday would be circled on the calendar.

Neither team qualified ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid left Friday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers after being struck on the right side of the face underneath the basket.

The 76ers center suffered a sinus fracture while trying to make a defensive play 12 seconds before halftime. Embiid fell to court and remained there until the Sixers called timeout with 6.1 ...Read more

DENVER — A game that wasn’t on the schedule two weeks ago could maybe — just maybe — end up being one of the most impactful results of the Nuggets’ season.

After getting eliminated from the NBA Cup in the group stage, they needed to be scheduled for two make-up games in December. One of those was Friday night’s 120-98 win over the ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — A lot had changed since the 76ers faced the Indiana Pacers on Oct. 27 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse — or so we thought.

As we found out in Friday night’s 121-107 loss at the Wells Fargo Center, the Sixers are still snakebitten and prone to injury, especially Joel Embiid.

Embiid left the game 6.5 seconds before intermission and ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The extended break for both the Lakers and Timberwolves did neither team any good when they took the floor Friday night at Target Center. Both looked rusty, to say the least, and the Lakers were without LeBron James, who is away from the team.

Free-flowing offense was nowhere in sight, but the Wolves still had a few players who ...Read more

MIAMI — So who is Bernie Lee, the agent for Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler, the representative who has put himself at the forefront of recent trade speculation fostered by ESPN regarding his client’s future?

More than anything, he’s a passionate (sometimes overly passionate) defender of his clients and a presence with a high visibility ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — The world has caught on to Hawks forward Jalen Johnson.

That’s not necessarily new for this season, but Johnson, who turns 23 next Wednesday, has built off his breakout performance from last season. Johnson has been relatively healthy this season, missing only two of the 26 games the Hawks have played.

Johnson has put up career...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid left Friday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers after being struck in the face underneath the Pacers’ basket.

The 76ers’ center was hit in the face while trying to make a defensive play 12 seconds before the halftime intermission. Embiid fell to court and remained there until the Sixers called a timeout ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James remained away from the Lakers in Minnesota on Friday, the 39-year-old listed as out with a left foot injury.

James hasn't been around the Lakers because of "personal reasons," according to the Lakers and coach JJ Redick.

Asked if he knew when James would return to the Lakers, Redick said, "no."

James showed up on ...Read more

Here is a look at the upcoming NBA Cup semifinal games in Las Vegas:

— What: NBA Cup semifinals

— When: Saturday

— Where: T-Mobile Arena

— Matchups: Atlanta Hawks vs. Milwaukee Bucks (1:30 p.m., TNT/truTV); Houston Rockets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (5:30 p.m., ABC)

Line: Bucks -3 1/2, total 229; Thunder -5 1/2, total 212 1/2

...Read more

MIAMI — The Miami Heat on Friday set up a small trade that could have a wide-ranging impact across their roster and payroll.

Reaching an agreement with the Indiana Pacers, the Heat will send out center Thomas Bryant once he is eligible to be traded Sunday.

While the Heat will receive the right to swap 2031 second-round draft slots with the ...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — The first Kentucky-Louisville game in this new era of college basketball in the commonwealth is almost here.

Mark Pope’s Wildcats will see Pat Kelsey’s Cardinals on the Rupp Arena court at 5:15 p.m. Saturday, the first meeting between the two new coaches. Pope knows plenty about this rivalry, playing in two editions of it...Read more

MIAMI — Jimmy Butler made sure this wouldn’t be hair raising, sporting tightly woven orange braids.

So the Miami Heat settled for a bit of four-play, extending their winning streak to four with a 114-104 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night at Kaseya Center.

Avenging a loss the previous time the teams met, the Heat rode the ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Someone check on Tim Connelly. He hasn’t made a trade in hours.

The Timberwolves hired Connelly to be their president of basketball operations in May of 2022. Since then, he has made four major deals:

— A large number of players and picks for Rudy Gobert.

— D’Angelo Russell for Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker....Read more

The Kings continued their recent resurgence with a 111-109 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday at Smoothie King Center.

Domantas Sabonis had a monster double-double with 32 points and 21 rebounds for the Kings (13-13), who have won four of their last five to get back to .500 for the first time since Nov. 22.

CJ McCollum scored 36...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Paul George knows more than most about the mental toll injuries have put Joel Embiid through.

Embiid returned to the court Sunday afternoon and led the 76ers to a road victory over the Chicago Bulls. After finishing with 31 points and 12 rebounds, Embiid reiterated that he’s been dealing with depression. He told ESPN that he ...Read more

BOSTON — Last Wednesday, the short-handed Celtics needed to buckle down in the final minutes to secure a competitive victory over the pesky Detroit Pistons.

Boston faced the same scenario eight days later: home game against Detroit without the services of Jayson Tatum, who sat out with a knee injury.

This time around, there was no need for ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James, who hasn't been with the Lakers this week because of "personal reasons," will miss Friday's game in Minnesota against the Timberwolves.

Thursday, the team listed him as "out" with left foot soreness, an issue that popped up last week after the Lakers played the Miami Heat. James sat out the team's win Sunday ...Read more