8:00 AM ET For nearly two decades, Manu Ginobili has had hundreds of dinners and countless talks with San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, discussing everything from “politics, war, the game, or kids.” Popovich even showed up at Ginobili’s door at 1 in the morning with wine to cheer him up after a tough game.
NBA
10:31 PM ET PHILADELPHIA — Ben Simmons endured all the boos that came his way during an emotionally charged return to Philly — and his new Brooklyn Nets teammates made sure they got the last laugh with a dominant 129-100 win over the 76ers on Thursday night. Making his first appearance in Philadelphia since requesting
5:18 PM ET New York Knicks forward Cam Reddish will miss the rest of the season with a right shoulder separation, the team announced Thursday. Reddish’s timeline for recovery will be six weeks, so he is expected to be able to have a full summer of work ahead of the 2022-23 season, sources told ESPN.
10:51 PM ET ESPN News Services MIAMI — Not that there was any doubt about this, but the Phoenix Suns are going to the playoffs. The Suns didn’t leave any doubt in a matchup of conference leaders, either. Devin Booker scored 23 points, Mikal Bridges added 21 and the Suns shook off a slow start
2:03 AM ET HOUSTON — A triple-double from LeBron James and a high-scoring effort from Russell Westbrook weren’t enough to halt the Los Angeles Lakers‘ self-destruction tour, with Wednesday’s 139-130 overtime loss to the Rockets being the latest lowlight in a season full of them. “We kind of messed around with the game and they
3:24 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN CAMDEN, N.J. — Even with Ben Simmons not playing in Thursday night’s game between the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers, there is plenty of excitement in Philadelphia. Sixers coach Doc Rivers said after practice Wednesday that while he isn’t a fan of the way this Atlantic Division rivalry began, he
1:28 PM ET The NBA suspended Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis for one game without pay for “aggressively confronting and making contact with a game official,” the league announced Wednesday. Sabonis was ejected in the Monday night game against the New York Knicks with 4:35 remaining in the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center in
9:35 PM ET CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kyrie Irving‘s 50-point outburst during Tuesday night’s 132-121 win over the Charlotte Hornets was so impressive that Kevin Durant spent the first few moments of his postgame news conference clapping for his teammate at the podium. Durant called Irving’s performance a “master class” and said younger players should watch
11:23 PM ET ESPN News Services SAN FRANCISCO — Will Ferrell screamed and put a hand in Klay Thompson‘s face as the Golden State Warriors star lofted a baseline 3-pointer. Nice defensive closeout, no doubt. Ferrell took the floor and warmed up with the Warriors on Tuesday night — maybe just what coach Steve Kerr’s
11:39 PM ET ESPN News Services SAN ANTONIO — Gregg Popovich is just one win away from becoming the NBA’s all-time winningest coach. Popovich tied Don Nelson’s NBA record with his 1,335th career victory as a coach in the San Antonio Spurs‘ 117-110 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night. And he did
9:11 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN DENVER — Draymond Green is targeting March 14 as his return date from the lower back injury that has held him out since January. “Next Monday, the 14th, against the Wizards. That is the date I am targeting,” Green said on his podcast, “The Draymond Green Show.” “I am excited
8:00 AM ET Which NBA teams are making the biggest moves after an action-packed weekend? On Saturday, the Miami Heat toppled the Philadelphia 76ers in a matchup of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference. James Harden didn’t suit up — he was held out in the second leg of a back-to-back — but
12:47 AM ET Andrew LopezESPN As Nikola Jokic sat at the podium for his postgame news conference, his Denver Nuggets teammate Bones Hyland briefly popped in the room to let his thoughts be known. “MVP! MVP! MVP!” The comments came after the reigning MVP put up an excellent case for why he should get another
4:48 PM ET Associated Press BOSTON — Jayson Tatum scored a season-high 54 points — 34 of them in the second half — and the Boston Celtics overcame a rare appearance of both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in the Nets lineup, beating Brooklyn 126-120 on Sunday. Durant played in his second game since mid-January
12:25 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN BOSTON — The Celtics‘ Jaylen Brown started Sunday afternoon’s game against the Brooklyn Nets after successfully testing out his sprained right ankle before tipoff. Celtics coach Ime Udoka had said earlier Sunday that Brown’s status would be determined by a pregame workout, and that the ankle sprain — which Brown
2:40 AM ET LOS ANGELES — Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors played the foil in the most notable bounceback of LeBron James‘ career back in the 2016 NBA Finals. On Saturday, they were subjected to another classic “desperation” performance by James. James scored 56 points, his highest-scoring game ever with the Los Angeles
8:25 PM ET There has been an increasing push among many in the Los Angeles Lakers organization to demote nine-time All-Star guard Russell Westbrook from the starting lineup, but so far coach Frank Vogel has resisted bringing him off the bench, sources told ESPN. The coaching staff and Westbrook have had differing visions on how
11:34 AM ET The lawyers leading the NBA’s investigation into the Phoenix Suns are preparing to interview Robert Sarver regarding the accusations against the team and its majority owner, sources close to the investigation told ESPN. Sources said more than 300 people have been interviewed as part of the investigation, which the league launched in