NBA

1:11 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN PHILADELPHIA — 76ers star Joel Embiid heard Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse complain about the way Embiid was officiated in the opener of the teams’ first-round playoff series on Saturday night. So, after Embiid finished with 31 points, 11 rebounds and went 12-for-14 from the free throw line — taking

5:16 PM ET MIAMI — A couple of hours after the Miami Heat opened up their postseason run with a dominant 115-91 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, the NBA announced the finalists for the 2021-22 regular-season awards. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was named one of the top three candidates for Coach of the

8:00 AM ET If NBA fans outside of Pennsylvania didn’t know the name Tyrese Maxey, they sure do now. While the Toronto Raptors were keying in on superstars Joel Embiid and James Harden, the Philadelphia 76ers‘ second-year guard was showcasing why he is such an important player in their success with 38 points in a

8:49 PM ET BOSTON — Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving said he was responding to words he heard from the crowd when he flipped off several Boston Celtics fans on two separate occasions during Sunday’s 115-114 loss in Game 1. After the game, Irving made it clear that he would have “the same energy for

1:55 PM ET Adrian Wojnarowski Close Senior NBA Insider Host of The Woj Pod Joined ESPN in 2017 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 DALLAS — Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic remains unlikely to play in

3:40 AM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors have a long-standing history of small-ball lineups. During the first championship run of their dynastic era, their small lineup was so lethal it was dubbed the “death lineup.” It has gone through a few different renditions since then, but as the Warriors embark

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 how effective James Harden would be against Toronto’s long, switching defense. In Game 1 on Saturday night, however, it was another 76ers guard who stole the

11:35 AM ET After running and shooting without back pain for over a week, Brooklyn Nets star Ben Simmons is expected to take the next step on the floor in the coming week and begin practicing against teammates on the court, sources told ESPN on Saturday. His continued progress is fostering hope that Simmons could

8:00 AM ET NBA Insiders The NBA playoffs are here with four first-round games taking place on Saturday and Sunday. In the East, all eyes will be on the Boston Celtics vs. Brooklyn Nets series as Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving look to upset the No. 2 seed Celtics, who are without injured center Robert

10:20 PM ET Despite losing starting center Clint Capela to a first-half injury in Friday’s play-in game, the Atlanta Hawks rallied behind Trae Young’s season-saving second half to beat the Cavaliers, 107-101, in Cleveland. The Hawks advance to face the Miami Heat, the Eastern Conference’s top-seeded team, in a first-round playoff series that begins Sunday

12:37 PM ET LA Clippers star Paul George has entered health and safety protocols after testing positive for COVID-19 and will miss Friday night’s play-in game against the New Orleans Pelicans, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim Bontemps. The winner of Friday’s game earns the No. 8 seed and a first-round meeting with the

8:00 AM ET Andrew LopezESPN THE LINE WAS wrapped around the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. It was July 5, 2019, and the debut of Zion Williamson was here. After waiting through the first three games, fans were eager to see the main event: Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans taking on the

4:38 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry participated in the team’s scrimmage Thursday, marking another benchmark in his return from a left foot strain that has kept him out since March 16. Warriors coach Steve Kerr said both he and Curry are optimistic that the guard will be

9:00 AM ET Mark Fainaru-Wada Close ESPN Staff Writer Investigative reporter for ESPN’s Enterprise and Investigative Unit since 2007 Co-author of New York Times best-selling books “League of Denial” and “Game of Shadows” Co-winner, 2004 George Polk Award Steve Fainaru Close ESPN Senior Writer Winner, 2008 Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting Four-time first-place winner in

12:24 AM ET ATLANTA — Atlanta Hawks coach Nate McMillan took some heat from his coaching staff — as well as some fans on social media — for having starters on the court with just over five minutes left in Wednesday night’s 132-103 play-in victory over the Charlotte Hornets. “The coaches were yelling and screaming

11:02 PM ET Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges struck a young fan with his mouthpiece after he was ejected from the team’s 132-103 play-in loss to the host Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night, later calling his actions as he exited the court “unacceptable.” With Atlanta up big in the second half and Charlotte’s season winding

7:00 AM ET Andrew LopezESPN ON THE FINAL night of the All-Star break, New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum, forward Brandon Ingram and coach Willie Green went out for a small, private dinner at FLINT by Baltaire in Phoenix. The Pelicans had gone 1-4 since the Feb. 8 trade that sent Josh Hart, Tomas Satoransky,

12:38 AM ET NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets star forward Kevin Durant has been in the league long enough to know that it’s not wise to give a playoff opponent any extra motivation before a series begins. So when Durant heard Nets guard Bruce Brown‘s critique of the Boston Celtics, saying that the Nets can