Nic Claxton returned to the Nets’ starting lineup, seemingly for good, on Friday against the Boston Celtics. That meant Ben Simmons, who had started six games at center this season in place of a limited Claxton, came off the bench for the first time in 2024-25.

It was painfully obvious that Claxton, Brooklyn’s $100 million man, was not ...Read more

DURHAM, N.C. — No. 7 Duke turned in another strong performance against an overmatched opponent Friday night, setting the Blue Devils up for next week’s first test against a ranked team.

Displaying lock-down defense while raining in 3-pointers, the Blue Devils rolled past Army West Point, 100-58, at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Having routed ...Read more

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida Gators men’s basketball coach Todd Golden is under investigation by the school’s Title IX office for allegations of stalking, cyberstalking, sexual harassment and sexual exploitation by multiple women, including UF students, according to the school’s Independent Florida Alligator newspaper.

An alleged copy of...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Seated inside the gym at the John Wooden Center, Tyrese Maxey wore a compression sleeve on his right hamstring.

The 76ers All-Star point guard felt a little better Friday morning, two days after suffering the injury against the Los Angeles Clippers.

“It’s a little frustrating,” he said of being unable to play. “But at ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — For the immediate future, the 76ers are in a rough spot.

Friday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers will only be Paul George's third game back from a left knee bone bruise. Joel Embiid is out while serving the second game of a three-game suspension for his altercation with Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes. And ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Villanova freshman Matthew Hodge has been ruled academically ineligible by the NCAA, and an initial waiver to change his eligibility status has been denied, leaving the school and Hodge with one last resort: an appeal, and a final decision is expected on Wednesday, the school announced in a detailed news release Friday afternoon...Read more

CHICAGO — For most of the game Thursday, the Timberwolves’ defense was absent from the United Center. The Wolves seemed resigned to attempt to outscore the Bulls, who were without guard Zach LaVine and playing on a back-to-back. After trailing most of the night, the Wolves came back in the fourth quarter for a 135-119 win.

They went on a ...Read more

STORRS, Conn. — Opening night comes with jitters, butterflies, a certain fear of the unknown. What if you’ve scripted and scored, say, a college basketball equivalent of South Pacific and Oklahoma! back to back?

Everyone comes to Broadway expecting you to knock it out of the park all over again, another unforgettable show. Gotta be Cats, ...Read more

The Warriors might very well be for real.

It would be ridiculous to suggest otherwise after they went into Boston and beat the Celtics on Wednesday.

That’s a big-time win against the defending champions, and it was no fluke.

Of course, it’s the first full week of November. Eight games in is too early to make bold declarations about a ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The Lakers assigned rookie guard Bronny James to their South Bay Lakers affiliate Thursday, clearing the way for James to make his NBA G League debut Saturday night in El Segundo.

James, the son of Lakers' star LeBron James, appeared in four games with the Lakers this season, including a moment on the floor together with his ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Tyrese Maxey is expected to be sidelined for a couple of weeks with a right hamstring injury, sources confirmed Thursday.

The 76ers guard felt hamstring tightness during the 110-98 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday at the Intuit Dome. Hamstring tightness that requires a multiweek recovery often indicates a strain. ...Read more

Paul George got the basketball on the wing and those same Clippers fans that cheered and adored him during the five years when he was one of their own ... booed him.

The boos from the sparse crowd at the Intuit Dome rained down on George all game because he now was a Philadelphia 76er. The fans even booed George when the Clippers showed a ...Read more

DENVER — In what was supposed to be their first scheduled loss of the season, the Nuggets refused to accept that label.

Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon out due to injuries. Against an undefeated opponent. An undefeated opponent that already crushed Denver at Ball Arena this season on opening night. Somehow, still, the short-handed Nuggets ...Read more

This time the Miami Heat survived the third quarter.

What they couldn’t handle was the fight to the finish. Not with Kevin Durant on the other side.

And, so, it remains a season still in search of a quality win, Erik Spoelstra’s team falling to 3-4 with a 115-112 loss Wednesday night to the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center.

Despite a 28-...Read more

The Detroit Pistons' two-game win streak ended Wednesday night in a 108-107 buzzer-beating loss to the Charlotte Hornets at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.

Jaden Ivey drilled a pair of clutch free throws that gave the Pistons a 103-101 lead with 1:08 left in the fourth quarter. However, All-Star guard LaMelo Ball scored five of the ...Read more

INDIANAPOLIS — Life without Paolo Banchero on the court hasn’t been easy for the Orlando Magic, to say the least.

Orlando, who’s without its first-time NBA All-Star indefinitely due to a torn right abdominal muscle, dropped its fifth straight contest Wednesday night against the Indiana Pacers despite a game-high 28 points from Franz ...Read more

Death, taxes and the final game of a long road trip.

The Knicks concluded their four-game, eight-day swing with a trip to Atlanta to face the Hawks, and after winning in Miami and Detroit, then losing in Houston, the Knicks found themselves in a dogfight on Wednesday.

And after a particularly disappointing loss in H-Town, courtesy of a ...Read more