NBA

12:13 AM ET Marc J. Spears After a 16-year hiatus, it was only right that the Sacramento Kings punched their own ticket back into the NBA playoffs. The Kings had been eligible to qualify for the playoffs since Saturday but came shy of getting the needed wins from themselves and other teams entering Wednesday. However,

4:25 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday he is hopeful that a new collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players can get done by the end of this week, though he stopped short of predicting that a deal would actually get struck. “I think everyone understands

7:13 AM ET There are just two weeks left in the 2022-23 NBA season, but there are still countless possibilities regarding the Western Conference playoff seeding. The top three seeds are nearly locked up by the Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings, but there is an eight-team logjam for the final seven seeds of

3:47 PM ET Kevin Durant will finally make his home debut as a Phoenix Sun on Wednesday against the Minnesota Timberwolves after missing three weeks with a left ankle sprain, sources confirmed to ESPN. Durant suffered a freak sprain after slipping during pregame warmups on March 8, which caused him to miss the last 10

8:42 PM ET Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki and coach Gregg Popovich are among the finalists elected into a starry Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2023, sources told ESPN on Tuesday. Two international stars — Pau Gasol and Tony Parker — and WNBA legend Becky Hammon have also been voted into the 2023 class,

9:43 AM ET Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal is under police investigation over a postgame incident last week with a fan in Orlando, according to police documents obtained by ESPN. The Orlando Police Department is investigating Beal for battery but has not filed charges as of Tuesday morning. The incident occurred near the visiting players’

2:47 AM ET DENVER — Nikola Jokic did not get to face Joel Embiid in a highly anticipated duel with MVP ramifications on Monday night. With Embiid sitting out due to a right calf injury, Jokic delivered his 29th triple-double of the season to lift the Denver Nuggets to a 116-111 win over the Philadelphia

2:12 PM ET Adrian Wojnarowski Close Adrian Wojnarowski Senior NBA Insider Host of The Woj Pod Joined ESPN in 2017 Ramona Shelburne Close Ramona Shelburne ESPN Senior Writer Senior writer for ESPN.com Spent seven years at the Los Angeles Daily News Ahead of a much-anticipated meeting of two MVP front-runners, the Philadelphia 76ers are ruling

2:55 PM ET Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic is facing a one-game suspension after being called for his 16th technical foul of the season during Sunday’s road game against the Charlotte Hornets. Doncic was whistled for a technical foul with 7:51 remaining in the third quarter for arguing a no-call after missing a shot on

5:51 PM ET Associated Press BOSTON — Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum is out for Boston’s game against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday with a left hip contusion. The 25-year-old MVP candidate is averaging a team-leading 30.1 points per game, 8.9 rebounds and 4.7 assists. It’s just the sixth game he has missed this

3:02 PM ET After missing the past 13 games, LeBron James is available to play for the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday against the Chicago Bulls. James has been dealing with a tendon injury in his right foot. He was initially upgraded Saturday to doubtful for Sunday’s game, then Sunday was deemed questionable before testing

6:47 PM ET ESPN News Services CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — The family of former North Carolina and NBA big man Eric Montross says he has begun treatment for cancer. Montross’ family issued a statement through the school on Saturday announcing the 51-year-old’s diagnosis, though it didn’t specify the nature of the cancer. “We are all

7:21 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Lakers star LeBron James has been upgraded from out to doubtful for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bulls, the team announced Saturday. James, sidelined the past 13 games since suffering a tendon injury in his right foot on Feb. 26, tweeted earlier this week that he was working out

6:50 PM ET Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young was ejected from Saturday’s game against the Indiana Pacers for heaving the ball at a referee in the middle of the third quarter. Young had just been called for an offensive foul that led to a game-tying 3-pointer from Tyrese Haliburton, resulting in a timeout by

3:09 AM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — As the Golden State Warriors go through the final games of the 2022-23 regular season, they are operating with one clear goal in mind: Finish in the top six in the Western Conference. “We definitely want to stay out of the play-in tournament,” Stephen Curry said following

1:39 AM ET DALLAS — The home crowd loudly booed at the American Airlines Center during a timeout midway through the third quarter Friday night, when the Dallas Mavericks trailed the Charlotte Hornets by 18 points. “We probably should have been booed in the first quarter,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said after a 117-109 loss

2:52 PM ET DALLAS — Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic has been fined $35,000 for “directing an inappropriate and unprofessional gesture toward a game official,” the NBA announced Friday. Doncic rubbed his fingers together, in an apparent reference to money, while staring down a referee with 1.7 seconds remaining in Wednesday’s 127-125 loss to the Golden

7:25 AM ET ANTHONY DAVIS SAT in the corner of his bedroom closet, overwhelmed. It was a couple days after another injury threatened to derail yet another season for him, and the Los Angeles Lakers big man was at his breaking point. “I’m like, shaking,” Davis told ESPN last week, jittering his hand to illustrate