BOSTON — Jayson Tatum has been adamant that he doesn’t view the Boston Celtics’ game with the Brooklyn Nets as a chance to prove anything against two of the league’s top scorers. His finish in Game 1 said otherwise. Tatum made a layup at the buzzer on a pass from Marcus Smart to give Boston … Read more
MIAMI — The Heat’s defense may have stifled Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young all game in Sunday’s 115-91 Game 1 win of their first-round series, but the No. East knows she can’t expect Young and the eighth-seeded Hawks to go easy. “He’s going to score the ball,” Heat forward PJ Tucker said of Young. “It’s … Read more
SAN FRANCISCO — Injured Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. remains hopeful he can play in his team’s first-round series against the Golden State Warriors. “Right now I’m taking it game by game. I’m not ruling anything out,” Porter told ESPN’s Andscape after the Nuggets’ 123-101 loss to the Warriors in Game 1 on Saturday … Read more
3:40 AM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors have a long history of small-ball lineups. During the first championship run of their dynastic era, their little roster was so deadly that it was dubbed the “death roster.” It’s had several different renditions since then, but as the Warriors head into their … Read more
12:44 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN PHILADELPHIA — In the days leading up to the start of the first-round series between the 76ers and Toronto Raptors, the focus was on James Harden’s effectiveness against Toronto’s long defense. In Game 1 on Saturday night, however, it was another 76ers guard who stole the show. Tyrese Maxey’s 38 … Read more
Jump forward: Game of the night | Guitar picks and accessories | Analytical edge What you need to know for Saturday’s playoffs Losing Luka: The Mavericks will be without Luka Doncic for Saturday morning’s game with the Jazz. Jalen Brunson sees his usage and assist rates soar to star levels every time Doncic is on … Read more
The NBA playoffs are here, and it’s shaping up to be an open chase for the 2022 title. The Phoenix Suns walked away with the league’s best regular season record — eight games ahead of the second-best Memphis Grizzlies. Devin Booker, Chris Paul and the defending Western Conference champions are on a mission to redeem … Read more
What awaits us in the NBA playoffs? The Brooklyn Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves advance as seven seeds, while the Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans captured eight seeds on the final night of the NBA play-in tournament. Every first-round series is set: Miami Heat vs. Hawks, Boston Celtics vs. Nets, Milwaukee Bucks vs. Chicago Bulls, … Read more
Phoenix Suns majority owner Robert Sarver will retire as executive chairman of Western Alliance Bancorporation in June, ending a two-decade tenure with the company of nearly $56 billion in assets. The company’s recent announcement of Sarver’s impending departure comes amid the NBA’s investigation into the Suns and Sarver, which the league launched in early November … Read more
Baylor freshman Jeremy Sochan will enter the 2022 NBA Draft and waive his remaining college eligibility by hiring agents, he told ESPN on Friday. “I have the chance to declare myself for the 2022 NBA draft,” Sochan, the ESPN 100 No. 14 prospect, told ESPN. He said he would sign Jim Tanner and Deirunas Visockas … Read more