DURHAM, N.C. — Kon Knueppel is the first of what’s expected to be a series of Duke freshmen to announce he’s leaving school early for the NBA.

A 6-7 guard, Knueppel made his widely expected news public on Wednesday in a social media post, saying he’s giving up his final three seasons of college eligibility to turn pro.

Multiple NBA ...Read more

Even before her name was officially announced as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, Paige Bueckers was feeling the love from the Dallas Wings.

After she led the UConn women’s basketball team to its long-awaited 12th NCAA championship, Wings guard DiJonai Carrington commented under her celebratory Instagram post, “Congrats tea**...Read more

DENVER — You’d move a kidney stone with less pain than it would take to move Michael Porter Jr’s contract. Still, Josh Kroenke insists that MPJ is AFS.

As in, Available For Sale.

At least, that’s what Kroenke said Monday when I asked him about a report claiming the owners of the Nuggets were unwilling to move their talented but ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Dallas Wings didn’t just get the best available player in the WNBA draft, they got the most powerful voice.

They didn’t just get a national champ from UConn, they got Paige Bueckers, and all that comes with her. The No.1 pick in the WNBA draft is ready to lead, to make an impact on multiple fronts, including labor relations...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Bronny James saw his share of highs and lows during his rookie season with the Lakers organization.

Before the team's regular-season finale Sunday against the Portland Trail Blazers, coach JJ Redick was asked how he'd assess James' first season.

From his answer, it's clear that Redick saw only highs out of Lakers superstar ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Nothing out of the ordinary.

That’s how Magic coach Jamahl Mosley described his day leading up to Tuesday night’s play-in tournament game against the Hawks.

And Orlando‘s pathway to victory against Atlanta at Kia Center for a spot in the NBA playoffs was nothing out of the ordinary for Mosley’s squad.

Wendell Carter ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Tyronn Lue glided into the Clippers' postgame interview room on Sunday afternoon and clapped and clapped and clapped and clapped and clapped again. He beamed as his head bobbed up and down.

His Clippers squad had just qualified for the Western Conference playoffs, doing so in the last regular-season game with a win over the ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid called Andre Drummond last summer to persuade him to return to the 76ers as a free agent. So as Drummond sat before reporters following Sunday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls to close a dreadful, injury-riddled 24-58 season, he was asked for any insight on how Embiid is feeling mentally after undergoing his latest knee...Read more

CHICAGO — Josh Giddey will play in the Chicago Bulls’ first game of the play-in tournament.

Coach Billy Donovan didn’t want to make any promises after Giddey participated fully in practice Tuesday at the Advocate Center, saying he was “optimistic” about the guard’s availability for Wednesday’s home game against the Miami Heat.

...Read more

MIAMI — Erik Spoelstra stood in the same spot off the baseline of the Miami Heat practice court that he’s stood through all the years, good and bad, and as he talked about Wednesday’s play-in game, he wasn’t sending any message to his players.

Spoelstra doesn’t need the media to be an assistant coach. So, the message he sent about the...Read more

CHICAGO — The Chicago Sky’s top draft pick might not play in the WNBA this season — but the front office isn’t worried about the timeline of the 19-year-old Slovenian they selected at No. 10 on Monday.

General manager Jeff Pagliocca couldn’t be higher on Ajša Sivka. He didn’t expect her to be available toward the end of the first ...Read more

SEATTLE — You can’t always get what you need, but if you trade sometimes, you just might find that you get what you want.

OK, maybe that’s not quite how the lyric goes. But it might sum up the first-round pick for the Storm Monday.

See, this is a team that needed a guard after trading away Jewell Loyd this offseason. The deal ended up ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Have you ever seen anything more dismal than Sunday’s hopeless postseason news conference from 76ers president Daryl Morey?

It’s Morey’s nature to sound like a super smart Debbie Downer. Even when he’s giddy he seems a little glum.

But between the sighs and the downcast eyes Sunday evening, Morey projected a crushing ...Read more

He left his native Ivory Coast for America to pursue a dream, was unknowingly caught in a human trafficking ring, and after years of hell former TCU basketball player Souleymane Doumbia says, “It was all worth it.”

This week, his story that was chronicled on the LeBron James’ produced series, “Uninterrupted’s Real Stories of ...Read more

NEW YORK — UConn women’s basketball forward Aubrey Griffin became the 50th WNBA draftee in program history on Monday night when she was selected by the Minnesota Lynx with the No. 37 overall pick in the third round.

Griffin was the third former Husky selected in the 2025 WNBA draft, following superstar Paige Bueckers at No. 1 and point ...Read more

NEW YORK — After helping UConn to its 12th NCAA Championship in her lone season as a graduate transfer, point guard Kaitlyn Chen was selected No. 30 overall in the WNBA draft by the Golden State Valkyries on Monday night.

Chen wasn’t invited to the draft but was pulled out of the audience where she was in attendance to support Huskies ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Liberty did most of this offseason’s heavy lifting before the WNBA draft.

Last month’s trade for veteran point guard Natasha Cloud cost them a pair of first-round picks, including the No. 7 overall selection in Monday night’s draft at The Shed in Manhattan.

The defending WNBA champions had already traded away this year�...Read more