MIAMI — With Thursday marking the one-year anniversary of what could go down as one of the worst trades in the Miami Heat’s 37 seasons, it also stands as a time to consider what the franchise has done in its laudable-yet-concerning constant bid to remain relevant, to live in the moment.

Such consideration seems particularly apropos in light...Read more

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When the Charlotte Hornets left town on Jan. 8, flying across country to start things off with a pair of outings in Los Angeles, a unique itinerary awaited LaMelo Ball.

The Hornets’ superstar was in for a family affair in more ways than one, beginning with his first game action in his native area in years. But Southern ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Chris Finch was concerned about how his Minnesota Timberwolves would handle back-to-back games coming off a road trip — and doing it against one of the NBA’s hottest teams Saturday night at Target Center.

The Cleveland Cavaliers showed up at the end of a three-game road swing exuding the same “youthful spirit” that was ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — It wasn’t always pretty, but the Warriors got it done when it mattered most.

After a sluggish first half, Golden State’s offense found life in the final two quarters and held on to beat the last-place Washington Wizards, 122-114, to open its two-game home stand.

Stephen Curry scored 26 points and Andrew Wiggins had a game...Read more

SAN DIEGO — The halftime entertainment at Viejas Arena on Saturday night for San Diego State’s basketball game against UNLV was two roller skaters on a tiny octagonal platform that could barely fit them.

They didn’t fall off, despite spinning and performing acrobatics at dizzying speeds.

Metaphorically, the Aztecs did.

Splat.

The ...Read more

INDIANAPOLIS — Ricky Council IV shook free for a driving dunk, cutting what had been a double-digit Pacers lead to six. But then Myles Turner took a methodical bounce pass and knocked down the elbow jumper before Ben Sheppard buried a corner 3-point shot.

Those buckets helped the Pacers finish off a 115-102 victory over the still-shorthanded ...Read more

BOSTON — Scattershot shooting and poor late-game execution doomed the shorthanded Celtics on Saturday night.

Playing without big men Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford, Boston squandered a three-point lead in the final seconds of regulation and lost to the Atlanta Hawks 119-115 in overtime at TD Garden.

Jayson Tatum missed a would-be game-...Read more

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — As Cooper Flagg played the closest thing to a home game he’ll get as a college player, Boston College bloodied but couldn’t stop the superstar freshman.

A Maine native, cheered on by the hundreds of fans from his home state in his return to New England, scored 28 points to lead No. 3 Duke to a 88-63 ACC basketball ...Read more

DETROIT — On Saturday, the Detroit Lions had the city in the palm of their hands. Nearly everyone at Little Caesars Arena wore Honolulu blue in preparation for the Lions' divisional playoff contest against the Washington Commanders. Even All-Star guard Devin Booker had his mind on the Lions' postseason run, confirming to The Detroit News that ...Read more

ATHENS, Ga. — The scene at Stegeman Coliseum on Saturday has become routine lately. Georgia students were lined up around the corner more than an hour before the game, waiting to get in. Bulldogs football coach Kirby Smart was in the building. They came to see the Bulldogs treat No. 1 Auburn like they did then-No. 6 Kentucky and No. 17 ...Read more

MIAMI — Friday night was not the end, even with Jimmy Butler’s seven-game unpaid Miami Heat suspension drawing to a close.

Instead, based on Butler’s postgame comments, as the Heat turned from Friday night’s loss to the Denver Nuggets to Sunday’s visit by the San Antonio Spurs, the page has merely turned to the next chapter in the ...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — With a little more than five minutes left in the game, a total of 162 points had been scored.

And it was all tied up.

The first SEC battle between Kentucky and Alabama lived up to expectations Saturday afternoon in Rupp Arena, which hosted two of the most explosive offenses — and two of the best college basketball teams, ...Read more

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Four minutes, 30 seconds of game time.

That’s how long it took for the Kansas State Wildcats to score a point on their in-state rival, as the Kansas Jayhawks scored the first 14 points of Saturday’s meeting in Allen Fieldhouse.

The Jayhawks led by as many as 16 on Saturday, never trailing in an 84-74 win over the ...Read more

STORRS, Conn. — Hassan Diarra attempted to draw a foul on his potential game-tying 3-point shot with eight seconds left in UConn’s 68-63 loss to Creighton in Gampel Pavilion Saturday. The foul was called as he went into his shooting motion, but the officials deemed it on the floor, not granting any free throws for the Huskies point guard. ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — It is impossible to watch Joel Embiid not play meaningful basketball for the 76ers without remembering the last time he played meaningful basketball. It was last summer, at the Paris Olympics, and what stands out now, in the hindsight of his and the Sixers’ miserable season, is not just how he played but what he said.

Embiid�...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The time had come, the Los Angeles Lakers decided, to make a choice.

Since trading for D’Angelo Russell and playing him with Austin Reaves, the two guards largely alternated in the spotlight surrounding LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The touches, the shots, the responsibility — it usually always was split.

But gradually ...Read more

NEW YORK — Friday’s matchup between the Timberwolves and Knicks lost a healthy dose of its intrigue just before the game when Karl-Anthony Towns, who came in as a game-time decision because of a thumb injury, sat out his second consecutive game. There will be no other rematches this season between Towns and his former team.

The Wolves were ...Read more