NBA

8:45 AM ET Hanif Abdurraqib If I am being honest with myself, I probably do not love beautiful basketball as much as I’ve convinced myself I do over the past handful of my adult years. Of course, what registers as beautiful is subjective, but in this instance, I am talking specifically about the kind of

2:49 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN MIAMI — In three of the first four games of the Eastern Conference finals, the team leading at the end of the first quarter has come out on top each time. So, as the Boston Celtics prepare to take on the Miami Heat in Game 5 here at FTX Arena

1:54 AM ET DALLAS — Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic doesn’t necessarily see any honor in avoiding being swept in the Western Conference finals. He remains focused on beating the Golden State Warriors in the series, regardless of the long odds. The Mavs are attempting to become the first team in NBA history to overcome a

9:09 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN DALLAS — Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr didn’t want to talk about basketball in his pregame news conference heading into Game 4 of the Western Conference finals against the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night. Basketball, he said, didn’t matter. “Since we left shootaround, 14 children were killed, 400 miles

1:42 PM ET DALLAS — The Golden State Warriors will try to eliminate the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night without veteran forward Otto Porter Jr. The Warriors ruled out one of their valued subs because of left foot soreness at the morning shootaround before Game 4. Golden State leads the Western Conference finals 3-0. “He’s

2:06 AM ET BOSTON — Midway through the third quarter Monday night as the Celtics were pushing their lead to as much as 32 points, Rudy Gobert couldn’t resist. “This Boston defense is tough” the Utah Jazz center tweeted. This was both innocuous and accurate at a time when the Celtics were smothering the Miami

3:37 PM ET Denver Nuggets president Tim Connelly has agreed to a five-year deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves that is worth over $40 million and includes ownership equity, making Connelly one of the league’s highest-compensated executives, sources told ESPN. Connelly becomes the second consecutive top basketball executive to leave the Nuggets for a significantly more

1:10 PM ET BOSTON — Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro will not play in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals because of a left groin strain. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra made the announcement after Monday’s shootaround and said that Herro would be “day-to-day” moving forward. “We just had to be responsible and take the

1:28 AM ET DALLAS — Superstar Luka Doncic, moments after his Dallas Mavericks were pushed to the brink of elimination in the Western Conference finals, viewed the situation through a long-term lens. Doncic scored a game-high 40 points in Sunday’s 109-100 Game 3 loss to the Golden State Warriors, including 21 while the Mavs attempted

2:04 PM ET University of Michigan coach Juwan Howard recently declined a Los Angeles Lakers overture for the franchise’s coaching job, electing to remain at his alma mater, where Howard will coach his two sons next season, sources told ESPN. The Lakers have a formal search process in place, but courting college coaches typically requires

8:22 AM ET AS THE FINAL seconds wind down in the first quarter of Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against the Dallas Mavericks, Spencer Dinwiddie drives toward the right side of the paint. But Draymond Green is perched there, already anticipating what is to come — a Dinwiddie pass to Dorian Finney-Smith in

10:15 PM ET BOSTON — Miami Heat swingman Jimmy Butler will not return to Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Celtics because of right knee inflammation. The Heat made the announcement just after the start of the third quarter. It is unclear when Butler suffered the injury, but he did not warm

8:13 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN DALLAS — Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins has been listed as questionable with left ankle soreness ahead of Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. Wiggins appeared to have tweaked his ankle late in the third quarter of Game 2 on Friday when he landed

12:49 PM ET Nick Friedell BOSTON — Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry will warm up “with the intention to play” in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics on Saturday night, according to Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. Lowry has not played since re-injuring his left hamstring in Game 4 of the

1:55 AM ET SAN FRANCISCO — Coach Jason Kidd blamed the Dallas Mavericks‘ one-dimensional offensive approach for blowing a 19-point lead in Friday’s 126-117 loss to the Golden State Warriors, criticizing his team for relying too heavily on the 3-point shot during Game 2 of the Western Conference finals. The Mavs made 21 of 45

8:38 PM ET Andrew LopezESPN Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo highlighted the 2021-22 NBA All-Defensive teams, which were announced on Friday night. Smart, the league’s 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year, earned his third first-team nod. He was joined at the guard spot by

8:00 AM ET MIAMI — The Boston Celtics are a team of long-distance runners. For years, former Celtics president Danny Ainge employed a consultant that would identify draft picks and free agents’ “brain types” under the belief that certain personality traits made for better players. Ainge and that system are gone, but the Celtics —

1:04 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN MIAMI — For the first few minutes of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals, it appeared the Boston Celtics could be in some trouble. They left Miami’s shooters open for three quick 3-pointers. They allowed the Heat to get multiple second-chance opportunities. Robert Williams looked uncomfortable defending in space,