LOS ANGELES — Albert Sanders Jr., the boy with the big dreams and the bigger drive, was scared. He was angry. Worried.

He wanted to become a lawyer, to wow courtrooms just like Ben Matlock and Perry Mason did on his family's clunky console TV. But in 1994, when he was 14, that dream suddenly seemed beyond reach, hence the anger and worry. He ...Read more

NEW YORK — As the Spurs’ Christmas Eve shootaround at Madison Square Garden was wrapping up, Stephon Castle welcomed his mother, up from Georgia to celebrate her birthday.

He led his teammates in serenading “Mamma Castle” of social media fame with a rendition of “Happy Birthday,” as hers falls on the 25th. She thanked the Spurs, in ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — LeBron James walked through the visiting locker room Christmas afternoon and wondered if there was music playing inside the Chase Center.

As a DJ bumped early 2000s Ludacris near the hoop the Lakers were warming up on, James broke routine to dance and smile.

As much as any player in the league before or after, James is aware ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — Steph Curry and LeBron James played like they know they might not have too many Christmas Day games left in their careers.

Curry and James traded buckets and the Warriors superstar scored the team’s last eight points, nearly putting Golden State on his back.

With 12.2 seconds left, Curry drained a high-arcing corner 3 over ...Read more

NEW YORK — Many of the NBA’s greatest players are close to wrapping up their careers. But the league is in good hands with Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama.

That’s how Josh Hart felt after the 20-year-old Parisian produced a Christmas Day stat line that has never been seen before in the Knicks’ 117-114 win at Madison Square Garden: 42 ...Read more

BOSTON — If the 76ers’ game against the defending champion Boston Celtics was a barometer of where they stand, the answer was clear after registering a 118-114 Christmas Day victory at TD Garden.

The Sixers showed that they have the potential to be an elite team. They were solid in transition, had a balanced attack, built a 16-point lead ...Read more

DALLAS – The Timberwolves needed a day like Wednesday. Not just because they didn’t want to lose on Christmas, but after their previous three games, they were a team in need of some cheer.

They got that with a 105-99 victory over the Mavericks, even if they almost made it a bleak holidays. Their much-maligned offense had one of its better ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Forward Jimmy Butler is expected to miss his third consecutive game when the Heat face the Orlando Magic on Thursday night at Kia Center.

Butler formally was listed as doubtful on the Heat’s Wednesday injury report, with a designation of “return-to-competition reconditioning.” He previously had been listed as out for the...Read more

NEW YORK — All the Knicks wanted for Christmas was a five-game winning streak. At Madison Square Garden, and Santa Claus wore No. 25.

Mikal Bridges delivered his finest performance as a Knick, exploding for 41 points on 17-of-25 shooting to propel New York to a thrilling 117-114 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday.

His clutch ...Read more

CHICAGO — The Chicago Bulls weren’t expecting any gifts Monday evening when they played host to the Milwaukee Bucks in a pre-holiday game at the United Center.

But the Bucks provided a couple anyway.

Coach Doc River played the role of Secret Santa by sitting the Bucks’ two biggest stars — Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was dealing with ...Read more

BOSTON — Christmas Day will conclude a stretch that served as a barometer for the Philadelphia 76ers.

They are in Beantown to face the Boston Celtics in a 5 p.m. ET tilt at TD Garden. The marquee game will wrap a three-game stretch that started with Saturday’s road game against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Monday’s home game vs. the San ...Read more

CHICAGO — When the Chicago Bulls dealt Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder in June, many fans scratched their heads.

It was no secret that Bulls vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas was going to make some changes, but Caruso seemed like he’d made a new home in Chicago, a town that appreciates players who put ...Read more

DENVER — With sincerity and a sense of humor, Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. discussed his reaction to hearing his name in trade rumors on Monday, reflecting on his career in Denver and saying the front office has told him there’s no interest in trading him at the moment.

That could change, of course. As The Denver Post reported last ...Read more

MIAMI — The sense of dread proved all too real Tuesday, with the Miami Heat announcing that guard Dru Smith sustained a season-ending torn left Achilles tendon in Monday night’s victory over the Brooklyn Nets.

Having recently emerged as a prime rotation component in his comeback from his season-ending knee injury a year ago, Smith was ...Read more

ATLANTA – As Anthony Edwards was finishing his pregame warmup Monday with his usual set of halfcourt shots, he got word from his cameraman and content creator Dontre’ McCain to look behind him at the opposite baseline.

Edwards glanced and gave a quick smile as he saw his grandfather, Ben Edwards, sitting there watching his grandson warm up....Read more

LOS ANGELES — The Detroit Pistons are usually the team that suffers from their lack of ball security. They came into Los Angeles tied with the Toronto Raptors for the sixth-most turnovers, averaging 16.2. However, inside Crypto.com Arena Monday night, the Pistons were the beneficiary of a team that could not hold on to the ball.

The Los ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — The talking point around the Warriors over the past two days has been about how their young players can better play around Steph Curry.

But against the Pacers on Monday, they weren’t the problem. Curry was.

Head coach Steve Kerr directed pointed comments toward Jonathan Kuminga and others about passing the ball and avoiding...Read more

MIAMI – The Miami Heat already were at an emotional loss watching Dru Smith being escorted off the court in the second period with a leg injury.

For a while, they also seemed at a loss against a team trying to lose.

Eventually, if not emotionally, order was restored enough for Erik Spoelstra’s team to snap a three-game losing streak with ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid lost his cool and was ejected.

Andre Drummond had his ejection rescinded only to miss the second half with a left big toe contusion. And their 76ers held on to get a much-needed victory over a team with a winning record.

Friday’s 111-106 victory over the San Antonio Spurs at the Wells Fargo Center was indeed one ...Read more

ATLANTA – Before Monday’s game in Atlanta, Minnesota Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said his team’s offense was “going through it” after two rough outings at home. The Wolves’ first quarter backed that up as they fell behind Atlanta by 19.

They got it together for the middle quarters before their shooting dried up again in the ...Read more