NBA

6:58 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN When more than 90 players who signed as free agents become eligible to be traded Saturday, it will mark the unofficial start of trade season in the NBA. Several big names have already been traded since mid-November, including James Harden, Russell Westbrook, John Wall, Victor Oladipo, Chris Paul and Jrue

12:12 AM ET Andrew LopezESPN For New Orleans Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy, what he saw from Zion Williamson on Wednesday night was unlike anything he’d seen from the 20-year-old so far this season. “I told Zion at the end of the game that it was by far his best game of the year if

9:16 PM ET LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers and LA Clippers might have missed each other in the playoffs last year, but Lakers reserve Jared Dudley, in a new book, revealed his team was primed for the “Battle for L.A.” because of Paul George. “We hear some of those guys talking about how

7:00 AM ET Eric WoodyardESPN WHEN MYLES TURNER was told he would miss two to three weeks after suffering an avulsion fracture in his right hand on Jan. 14, he had one reaction. “No way,” the Indiana Pacers big man told his first-year coach Nate Bjorkgren. The Pacers’ next scheduled game, against the Phoenix Suns,

12:28 AM ET Paul George and Kawhi Leonard did their best to go blow for blow with the Brooklyn Nets‘ Big Three. But during the Nets’ 124-120 win over the LA Clippers in a game that lived up to the pre-game hype, the Clippers star duo could not keep up with Kevin Durant, James Harden

9:32 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN Fred VanVleet set a Toronto Raptors franchise record and a record for undrafted players by scoring 54 points in Toronto’s 123-108 victory over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night. “It was just time. … It’s just time,” VanVleet told SportstNet in Toronto after the game. “I’ve been missing a lot

10:19 AM ET The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association are progressing toward an agreement for an All-Star Game on March 7 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, a single-night event that encompasses a game between the Eastern and Western Conferences and skills competitions, sources told ESPN. While a formal agreement has yet to

1:54 AM ET Four courtside fans — at least one of whom was not covering her face with a mask — were ejected from Monday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Atlanta Hawks following a verbal spat with Lakers star LeBron James, the Hawks confirmed to ESPN. Juliana Carlos, who later posted on social

9:16 PM ET Monday’s Detroit Pistons–Denver Nuggets game was postponed minutes before its scheduled 9 p.m. ET tip at Ball Arena due to contact tracing within the Pistons, the NBA announced. Detroit returned a positive/inconclusive coronavirus test on a player, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Pistons were watching pregame film when they learned of

6:28 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN The Philadelphia 76ers were without All-Star center Joel Embiid Sunday night against the Indiana Pacers due to lingering back tightness in the wake of taking a hard fall against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night. “I don’t know if he took a step backwards,” Sixers coach Doc Rivers said

12:10 AM ET Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal rattled off a quick six points in a stunning 3.8-second sequence that propelled the Washington Wizards to a 149-146 comeback win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday night. “At this time, we don’t have nothing to lose,” Westbrook said. “It’s win or go home.” The Wizards, down

6:49 PM ET Associated Press DENVER — Nikola Jokic matched his career high with 47 points and the fast-starting Denver Nuggets beat Utah 128-117 on Sunday to end the Jazz’s winning streak at 11. Jokic was 17 for 26 from the field, hit all four of his 3-point attempts, made 9 of 10 free throws

11:12 AM ET Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart is expected to miss one to two weeks with a Grade 1 left calf strain, a source told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Smart underwent an MRI on Sunday after leaving in the fourth quarter of Boston’s 96-95 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday with the injury.

2:01 AM ET The latest chapter in the storied Los Angeles Lakers–Boston Celtics rivalry featured plenty of starpower in LeBron James and Anthony Davis on one side versus Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown on the other. However, the visiting Lakers held on to win 96-95 on Saturday thanks in large part to a hustle play

4:40 PM ET Associated Press ATLANTA — De’Andre Hunter, who has emerged as the Atlanta Hawks‘ second-leading scorer in his second season, will miss at least one game with a knee injury. The Hawks said Saturday that Hunter will not play in Monday’s home game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Hunter had a non-surgical procedure

7:16 PM ET NBA Insiders The NBA season is nearly a quarter complete and the contenders for the league’s top awards are coming into focus. Will LeBron James be able to add a fifth MVP award to his trophy room? Or, can a center win the MVP for the first time in over two decades?

1:00 AM ET Andrew LopezESPN NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans Pelicans point guard Lonzo Ball is no stranger to trade rumors. He spent an entire season with the Los Angeles Lakers hearing about how he could possibly get dealt before ultimately landing with the Pelicans in the summer of 2019. But as Ball tried to

12:26 PM ET Associated Press Alex Lasry, a 33-year-old Milwaukee Bucks executive and son of a billionaire, received the coronavirus vaccine this week at a senior living center in Milwaukee despite not being part of a group currently eligible for the shots in Wisconsin. Lasry told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he “just got lucky”