12:22 PM ET The Indiana Pacers have agreed to a multiyear deal to hire Toronto Raptors assistant Nate Bjorkgren as their head coach, sources told ESPN. The Pacers officially named Bjorkgren as their new head coach Tuesday but did not disclose terms of his deal. Bjorkgren, a disciple of reigning NBA Coach of the Year
NBA
7:06 AM ET This NBA offseason is full of decisions that could impact the hierarchy of the league for years to come. Will back-to-back MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo hold off on signing a supermax extension with the Milwaukee Bucks? Will the Golden State Warriors keep or trade the No. 2 overall pick in November’s draft? Will
Oct 15, 2020 Sports Africa Network recently hosted a roundtable with five basketball players from the African continent. The discussion revealed the tremendous potential the sport has for enhancing mutual understanding between Africa and the USA, while highlighting the challenges remaining. Thirteen Africa-born men play in the NBA today, nearly enough to fill a team
6:23 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN Sometime between now and the 2020 NBA draft on Nov. 18, the league should lift the monthslong transaction moratorium, allowing its annual round of offseason chaos to officially begin. There are many things the NBA will need to sort out over the next few months, from the salary cap rules
5:24 PM ET ESPN News Services MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota sports columnist and radio personality Sid Hartman, an old-school home team booster who once ran the NBA’s Minneapolis Lakers and achieved nearly as much celebrity as some of the athletes he covered, died Sunday. He was 100. Hartman, whose first newspaper column was published in 1945,
12:22 PM ET Former Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey took out a full-page advertisement in the Houston Chronicle on Sunday to thank the numerous people who helped him during his 13 seasons with the team. But he saved his most effusive praise for Rockets star James Harden, writing, in bold, “James Harden changed my
7:00 AM ET The Los Angeles Lakers are the 2020 NBA champions, blitzing through the bubble playoffs with a 16-5 record and finishing off the Miami Heat in six games in the NBA Finals. Now what? As the league enters an offseason of more uncertainty, we’re taking a way-too-early look at where all 30 teams
6:45 AM ET Tim MacMahon Close ESPN Staff Writer Joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009 Covers the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Mavericks Appears regularly on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM Kevin Pelton Close ESPN Senior Writer Co-author, Pro Basketball Prospectus series Formerly a consultant with the Indiana Pacers Developed WARP rating and SCHOENE system We hear you,
2:08 PM ET New Orleans Saints and Pelicans owner Gayle Benson was the victim of an attempted car theft last Saturday afternoon but was unharmed, Saints spokesman Greg Bensel confirmed. “I can confirm that an incident did occur in Orleans Parish involving Mrs. Benson while she was in her vehicle,” Bensel said in a statement.
8:17 PM ET For the third time since May, the NBA and National Basketball Players Association are extending a negotiating window that preserves each side’s rights to terminate the collective bargaining agreement due to the pandemic, sources told ESPN on Thursday. The NBA and NBPA agreed on a new Oct. 30 deadline to complete ongoing
4:30 PM ET Any eulogy for Daryl Morey’s groundbreaking tenure as Houston Rockets general manager should probably start with the 2017-18 season — when Houston took a 3-2 lead in the conference finals over perhaps the greatest team ever assembled, and might have upset those Golden State Warriors had Chris Paul not suffered a hamstring
12:04 PM ET Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey is stepping down, sources told ESPN. In the aftermath of Houston’s elimination from the NBA’s restart in Orlando, Florida, Morey approached owner Tilman Fertitta with the idea of leaving the job and the sides quietly worked through an exit agreement to conclude his 13 seasons running
2:31 PM ET Ty Lue is finalizing a five-year deal to become the next coach of the LA Clippers, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Thursday. Lue, who has served as an assistant with the Clippers, has been the front-runner for the team’s vacancy since Doc Rivers was dismissed on Sept. 28, sources had told
6:30 AM ET It’s the never-ending debate among today’s NBA fans: Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James. Or should that be LeBron James vs. Michael Jordan? While arguments can be (and have been) made for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Bill Russell and other NBA greats, the modern debate over who is the greatest since
6:10 AM ET The longest season in NBA history is finally complete. More than a full calendar year after teams reported to training camp, the Los Angeles Lakers were crowned champions, accepting the Larry O’Brien Trophy on Sunday night inside the NBA’s campus environment at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The NBA’s bubble was
4:24 PM ET The Brooklyn Nets are bringing back some ’90s fashion for the 2020-21 season. On Wednesday, the team unveiled its Nike Classic Edition jerseys — red, white and blue with a tie-dye pattern — that pay homage to the Nets’ roots in New Jersey, where the franchise started as the ABA’s New Jersey
11:54 AM ET Nick DePaulaESPN In advance of the 2020 NBA Draft, top prospect LaMelo Ball has signed a multi-year shoe deal with Puma, immediately becoming a key face of the brand at just 19 years-old. “I am really excited to be joining the Puma family,” said LaMelo Ball. “I believe the brand is the
5:30 PM ET Stan Van Gundy is meeting with New Orleans Pelicans officials on Tuesday, emerging as one of four expected finalists for the franchise’s coaching job, sources tell ESPN. Another New Orleans finalist — LA Clippers assistant Ty Lue — has a meeting set for this week, too, sources tell ESPN. Van Gundy’s reputation