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NBA Rumors
The daily league-wide NBA rumors page
By InsideHoops.comUpdated Tuesday, December 5, 2023 at 1:00 a.m. ET
THE LATEST NBA RUMORS
After missing Saturday's win over the Miami Heat with an upper respiratory infection, Indiana Pacers superstar Tyrese Haliburton didn't look like himself in the first half of Monday's In-Season Tournament quarterfinal here against the Boston Celtics. "The first half, I was dead," Haliburton would say later. So, at halftime, Haliburton -- at the behest of the training staff -- did something he's never done before: he used an inhaler. As a result, when the second half started, he looked like himself again -- and the Pacers looked like a totally different team. And, behind Haliburton's first career triple-double -- 26 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists in 40 minutes -- Indiana emerged with a 122-112 victory over the heavily-favored Celtics to advance to the In-Season Tournament semifinals in Las Vegas Thursday afternoon. - ESPN.com
There is optimism the Boston Celtics could have center Kristaps Porzingis back on the court later this week, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Porzingis will miss his fourth straight game with a right calf strain Monday when Boston visits the Indiana Pacers in the in-season tournament quarterfinals. But there have been no setbacks in his recovery thus far, which could pave the way for Porzingis to return as soon as Thursday, when Boston would play in the IST semifinals if the Celtics beat the Pacers. - ESPN.com
The Sacramento Kings issued a statement expressing their condolences after a fan died during their nationally televised game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night at Golden 1 Center. The Kings were playing the Pelicans in an in-season tournament game on TNT when the fan experienced a medical emergency. Paramedics responded to provide medical aid, but they were unable to resuscitate the victim. - Sac Bee
RECENT NBA RUMORS
Boston Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis has been ruled out of Monday's in-season tournament quarterfinal against the Indiana Pacers as he continues to recover from a left calf strain. Porzingis suffered the injury on Nov. 24 in a loss to the Orlando Magic and has missed Boston's past three games. - ESPN.com
Brooklyn announced late Saturday afternoon that forward Ben Simmons had received an epidural injection in his back, meaning his absence with a nerve issue in his lower back will stretch to more than a month. "The epidural happened within the course of this week here," Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said before hosting the NBA's hottest team, the Orlando Magic, here at Barclays Center on Saturday night. "It was just a part of his getting back to playing, and that is a part of his treatment, a part of his strengthening that was just a part of his getting back to a position of joining us. No setbacks. - ESPN.com
After the final buzzer sounded and the LA Clippers had pulled off an improbable 22-point comeback against the Golden State Warriors for a much-needed win, Paul George walked off the floor with a clenched fist before embracing Kawhi Leonard and James Harden. George buried a step-back 3 over Klay Thompson with 9.9 seconds left to help the Clippers stun the Warriors 113-112 at Crypto.com Arena. George's shot gave the Clippers (9-10) their only lead of the game. A Warriors team playing without the injured Andrew Wiggins, Chris Paul and Gary Payton II led 70-48 with 11:45 left in the third quarter but were outscored 65-42 the rest of the way. - ESPN.com
Subpoenas have been issued for Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant and members of his family to appear and testify at an upcoming court hearing for a civil lawsuit in Memphis, according to court filings obtained by ESPN. The lawsuit dates back more than a year and accuses Morant of assaulting a teenager during a pickup basketball game at Morant's home outside Memphis in July 2022. - ESPN.com
Celtics star Jayson Tatum did not believe his actions merited a second technical foul, and an ejection, in the closing moments of the third quarter of Boston's 125-119 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night at TD Garden. "I was extremely surprised [I was ejected]," Tatum said. "I mean, y'all saw what happened. Might not know what I said, but I mean, I guess whatever I said doesn't matter at this point. I don't agree with that. One of the assistant coaches was there with me, doesn't agree. But it doesn't really matter, right? ... When they throw you out, they throw you out. "Even if I was right, you know, they could go back and talk about it after the game. It's not like we get that game back, I don't get that time back. It's unfortunate, but like I said, I can't change what happened. Just how players compete and affect the game. The refs have an effect on the game. So they threw me out and right or wrong, it's their word against ours. But I can't get that time back." - ESPN.com
Kevin Durant sometimes spends idle time surfing YouTube, checking out old clips of NBA greats. At 35, he continues to earn his spot among them. Durant moved into 10th place on the NBA's career scoring list Friday night, passing Moses Malone in the second quarter of the Suns' 119-111 loss to the Denver Nuggets. "It's a long journey to be up there, mentioned with the greats," Durant said. "It takes a lot of work, a lot of preparation, a lot of people helping me get to this point." - ESPN.com
Franz Wagner scored 31 points, Paolo Banchero had 28 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists and the Orlando Magic beat the Washington Wizards 130-125 Friday night to tie a franchise record with their ninth straight victory. It was the third straight 30-point game for Franz Wagner, whose brother Moritz Wagner added 18 points to help Orlando beat Washington for the second time in three nights. The Magic have had four nine-game winning streaks, previously in 1994, 2001 and 2010-11. They are one of only two NBA franchises without a double-digit win streak on their record. The Indiana Pacers' longest win streak is also nine games. - ESPN.com
The Detroit Pistons became the first team in eight years to go winless for a full month of an NBA season Thursday night. But despite dropping a 16th consecutive game, losing 118-112 to the New York Knicks here at Madison Square Garden, coach Monty Williams and his young Pistons team saw the performance -- on the heels of a desultory home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers Wednesday night -- as a step in the right direction. "I saw the fight and resiliency that we can build on," Williams said after his Pistons fell to an NBA-worst 2-17 on the season, and became the first team since the 2015-16 Philadelphia 76ers, who lost 16 straight games in November 2015, to go winless for a full calendar month. "That's a game that we can build on. - ESPN.com
The New Orleans Pelicans announced Thursday they will be without Larry Nance Jr., who reaggravated a right rib fracture. The team said Nance is expected to miss four to six weeks. - ESPN.com
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, a longtime proponent of sports betting, has bigger dreams for gambling in Texas. In 2022, Cuban publicly floated an idea of partnering with the Las Vegas Sands organization to build a casino resort in the Dallas area that included a sports arena. On Wednesday, the Adelson and Dumont families, who own Las Vegas Sands, confirmed they're in a binding purchase agreement to acquire a majority ownership stake in the Mavericks, putting Cuban in direct partnership with the casino empire. In the deal, Cuban will retain control of basketball operations. The parties hope to receive approval from the NBA board of governors and finalize the deal by the end of 2023, according to a statement released Wednesday by Sands. The move would put another casino owner in the NBA and possibly push Texas closer to legalized sports betting and resort gambling -- a move state lawmakers have so far opposed. - ESPN.com
Maverick Carter, the manager for Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, and a business partner of his, told federal agents in 2021 that he had bet on NBA games through an illegal bookmaker, The Washington Post reported Thursday. In his admission in November 2021, Carter told federal agents that he "could not remember placing any bets on the Lakers" and denied placing bets for others, according to a report summarizing the interview that was reviewed by the Post. - ESPN.com
The Adelson family has had advanced discussions about buying a significant share of the Dallas Mavericks, sources told ESPN. Mark Cuban would remain governor of the franchise and in control of all basketball decisions, according to sources. The agreement would be in the valuation range of $3.5 billion and take weeks for the league to process, The Associated Press reported, citing a person with knowledge of the talks. - ESPN.com
The Adelson family is selling almost $2 billion in stock in the Las Vegas Sands Corp., "to fund the purchase of a majority interest in a professional sports franchise pursuant to a binding purchase agreement, subject to customary league approvals," according to an SEC filing. - ESPN.com
Hornets star guard LaMelo Ball is expected to miss multiple weeks because of a right ankle sprain, a development Steve Clifford called "frustrating" coming on the heels of Sunday's game, when Charlotte had its projected starting lineup available for the first time in the coach's tenure. "Obviously it's frustrating," Clifford said ahead of Tuesday night's game against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, the final in-season tournament group stage game for both teams. "The other night was the first time we went into a game for two years where that was the projected starting lineup -- basically, that it was the team that I thought I would coach. And we got about a quarter and three minutes, when he got hurt. - ESPN.com
The Boston Celtics sent Chicago Bulls center Andre Drummond to the line six times in the fourth quarter of a 27-point blowout on Tuesday. It wasn't a mistake - quite the opposite. A win wasn't enough for the Celtics. In order to advance in the In-Season Tournament, they needed to beat the Bulls by as many points as possible to secure a high point differential and claim the wild-card seed. So even after racking up a 34-point lead, the Celtics never took their foot off the gas. They kept their starters in the game until the final whistle. And midway through the fourth quarter, they began hacking Drummond - who shoots a 47.7% career average at the line - in an attempt to keep the Bulls from scoring. - Chicago Tribune
Anthony Edwards went down in the third quarter on a hard fall as he was fouled while trying to attack the rack. Edwards initially couldn't put weight on his right leg, but did eventually stay in to shoot his free-throws. However, he spent the next two possessions hobbling around the floor in clear pain. Oklahoma City (11-6) went on a 5-0 run before Minnesota finally called timeout, and Edwards immediately went back to the locker room and did not return with what the team called a hip contusion. Edwards finished with 21 points and five rebounds in 28 minutes. Edwards didn't speak with the media after the game. It's possible he could miss some action in the short term, but he was joking around the locker room and didn't seem concerned with the severity of his injury. - St. Paul Pioneer Press
Detroit Pistons coach Monty Williams called out his team for its lack of "fight" after another blowout loss, saying his players are not honoring "the organization and the jersey." Williams delivered a brief but passionate statement to reporters Monday night after Detroit's 126-107 home loss to the Washington Wizards in a matchup of the NBA's two worst teams. - ESPN.com
It was the fourteenth consecutive loss for the Pistons (2-15), who now own the NBA's worst record and have not won a game in a month. The lowly Wizards (3-14), who had not won since Nov. 8, shot 51% from the floor and had seven scorers in double figures against the Pistons, who have lost three of their past four games by a least 19. "That wasn't fight on the floor," Williams said. "That wasn't Pistons basketball by any stretch of the imagination. That's what this is -- we have to have people that honor the organization and the jersey by competing at a high level every night." - ESPN.com
Draymond Green doesn't regret the actions that landed him a five-game suspension. Putting Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert in a headlock on Nov. 14 was in pure defense of his Golden State Warriors teammate Klay Thompson, Green said Sunday. "I don't live my life with regrets," Green said after practice, the first time he has spoken to reporters since his suspension. "I'll come to a teammate's defense any time that I'm in a position to come to a teammate's defense. ... What matters to me is how the people that I care about feel, first and foremost. How are the people that I care about affected? How are the people I care about, what do they have to deal with? That's it for me." Just 100 seconds into the Nov. 14 game, Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels and Thompson got tied up with each other in transition, as Thompson held McDaniels' jersey while he waited for a long rebound. They refused to let go and began to swing each other around and push, resulting in McDaniels ripping Thompson's jersey and Thompson swinging his arm at McDaniels. - ESPN.com
Devin Booker knew the New York Knicks would make him give the ball up on the possession with the game on the line. He was also certain he'd get it back to take the kind of shot he'd dreamed about his whole life. And as soon as the ball left his right hand, Booker had no doubt it was going in, providing the deciding points in a 116-113 victory at Madison Square Garden on Sunday that extended the Phoenix Suns' winning streak to seven games. The last two of those wins came without co-superstar Kevin Durant, who was held out Sunday after a vigorous pregame workout to test his right foot soreness. The Knicks, as anticipated, sent a second defender toward Booker to temporarily force the ball out of his hands. Guard Jordan Goodwin received the pass on the right wing, glanced to the corner to freeze the defense and quickly delivered a dribble handoff to Booker, who took a couple of dribbles before launching a 3-pointer inches away from the New York bench with Knicks forwards Julius Randle and RJ Barrett contesting. - ESPN.com
The Milwaukee Bucks overcame a 26-point third-quarter deficit to defeat the Portland Trail Blazers 108-102 on Sunday, the largest comeback in the NBA so far this season. Down by 81-55 with 9:08 remaining in the third quarter, the Bucks finished the game on a 58-21 run, outscoring the Blazers by 32 points the rest of the way. Milwaukee's star duo of Damian Lillard (17) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (15) outscored 32-21 the Trail Blazers single-handedly during this span. Antetokounmpo, who finished with 33 points, broke a tie by tipping in a basket with 18.5 seconds left in the game to put the Bucks ahead for good. - ESPN.com
"I can't fake it. I'm beyond frustrated. And I think it's rightfully so as a competitor," DeMar DeRozan said. "Everybody in this locker room is frustrated. It's from a good place of being a competitor and wanting to figure it out that badly. Put a couple wins together. I really truly believe that can shift everything for us." The Bulls once again endured a slow start. They have led after just three of 17 first quarters and trailed by double digits in the first quarter for the fourth time already this season. "We gotta challenge ourself. We can't have those spiritual talks. We gotta challenge each other to leave it all the way out there," DeRozan said. "That's a good thing to be challenged. Ask something of yourself more than you ever have at this point, myself included. That's where we're at." - NBC Sports Chicago
And just like James kept coming at his former team, the 21-year NBA veteran keeps achieving in his career. So much so, in fact, that his charitable foundation opened up a museum -- LeBron James' Home Court -- on Saturday morning in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, to chronicle all the feats he continues to be responsible for. "Spent 11 years here and being able to come back after my Miami stint and win a championship here for this franchise, for this city, I think it was a 52-year [title] drought or something like that in the city of Cleveland for any sports team, I think that was just something that I will never forget no matter how old I get," James said. "I'll always remember that moment." The Cavs organization did its part in treating James like an old friend rather than the night's opponent. Cleveland's mascot, Moondog, approached the Lakers' huddle to greet James with a fist pound when he was announced in the starting lineup. During a first-quarter timeout, the videoboard played a lengthy tribute to James' climb to the top of the NBA's all-time scoring list, with many in the 19,432 sellout crowd standing up to cheer the 38-year-old star when it was finished. - ESPN.com
Already navigating early-season injuries to the roster, the Los Angeles Lakers suffered another setback Friday when forward Rui Hachimura underwent a procedure to repair a nasal fracture, the team announced. Hachimura did not accompany the team on its four-game trip starting in Cleveland on Saturday and continuing through Philadelphia, Detroit and Oklahoma City. He will be reevaluated by team doctors in about a week, the Lakers said. - ESPN.com
The NBA is looking into allegations that Oklahoma City Thunder guard Josh Giddey had an improper relationship with an underage girl, a league spokesperson said Friday. The allegations surfaced on social media earlier this week. - ESPN.com
Amid several significant injuries, the Memphis Grizzlies are signing guards Shaquille Harrison and Jaylen Nowell to 10-day hardship exceptions, sources told ESPN on Thursday. The NBA awarded the Grizzlies the exceptions with five players expected to be out two-plus weeks, sources said. All-NBA guard Ja Morant continues to serve his 25-game league suspension. - ESPN.com
Milwaukee superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and coach Adrian Griffin appeared to have a heated exchange when Antetokounmpo checked out of Wednesday's game midway through the third quarter, but neither had much to say about it following the Bucks' 119-116 loss to the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. "He wanted to stay in, I wanted to give him a breather. That's all it was," Griffin said afterward. "And then I told him to stay at the table for one possession, and he got right back out there." Antetokounmpo gave a one-word response when asked for an explanation of what took place: "No." - ESPN.com
The exchange happened with 5 minutes, 58 seconds left in the third quarter, after Antetokounmpo had been called for a carrying violation. As he began walking to the other end of the court, he looked at the Bucks bench and shook his head, and then appeared upset that Bobby Portis was checking in for him. Antetokounmpo then sat on the scorer's table and had an extended discussion with Griffin, one that ended with Antetokounmpo coming back into the game at the next dead ball. - ESPN.com
Wednesday night's game between the Warriors and Suns added another incident to the long conflict between Golden State's Chris Paul and referee Scott Foster when Paul was ejected after Foster slapped him with two quick technical fouls. It was Paul's seventh career ejection. "It's personal," Paul said. "We had a situation some years ago and it's personal. The league knows. Everybody knows. There was a meeting and all of that. ... I'm OK with a ref saying whatever they're saying, but don't use a tech to get your point across." - ESPN.com
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards believes he can become the first athlete to play in both the NBA and NFL. In a recent conversation with comedian Marco Summers on his talk show "Open Thoughts," Summers asked the All-Star guard if he could still play football and if there's ever been a player to play in both leagues. - ESPN.com
Basketball Africa League president Amadou Gallo Fall told ESPN that the BAL and NBA Africa chose South Africa as the fourth location for the expanded 2024 season due to the nation's strong infrastructure. Johannesburg will host the Kalahari Conference in March 2024, before the BAL moves on to the already-established Nile Conference in Cairo (April), the Sahara Conference in Dakar (May) and the seeding games and playoffs in Kigali (May - June). According to Fall, South Africa was always one of the countries the BAL was most focused on expanding into: "South Africa has always been a priority country for the NBA's development in Africa. "Obviously, this is where the headquarters of NBA Africa still [are]. There's been a lot of work over the years and the BAL is a culmination of many decades of work by the NBA, ultimately partnering with FIBA. - ESPN.com
Jrue Holiday said he doesn't have a chip on his shoulder as the Celtics guard enters his first matchup with the Bucks but noted that a heads-up in September from Milwaukee that he was going to be traded would have been appreciated. "No," Holiday said matter-of-factly Wednesday morning when asked whether he held a grudge toward the Bucks. "I think that they got what they wanted, so I can't be mad at that. "A warning would've been cool. But other than that, I'm in the best place that I can be to compete against them, which is for the top team in the East and, hopefully, the top team in the league." - ESPN.com
Holiday said he didn't have this game targeted above any other on the calendar. Instead, he said, the focus on Wednesday's showdown isn't because of him or Lillard, but instead because the Celtics and Bucks are seen as two of the NBA's elite teams. "It's not like I circled this one on my calendar or anything," Holiday said. "I think that this is a big game because of the two teams that are playing, I think because of the caliber players that are on the court and all that, so that's what I would like for it to be about, not me playing against the Bucks." - ESPN.com
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid will miss Wednesday night's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with left hip soreness. It will be the reigning MVP's first missed game of the season. - ESPN.com
LeBron James barreled through the lane from left to right, fighting through contact to muscle the ball up and off the backboard and through the rim. As his momentum carried him toward the corner of the Lakers' bench, his teammates stood and cheered. This wasn't just any basket against any opponent. This was two points over Dillon Brooks. And that's why James made sure to put his hand down near the court. “Too small” was the message. James was again excellent, scoring 37 points and hitting the winning free throw with Anthony Davis on the bench having fouled out in a 105-104 win against Houston on Sunday night at Crypto.com Arena. - LA Times
Mitchell Robinson is the best offensive rebounder right now in the NBA. It became his undisputed title after grabbing 11 offensive rebounds in Saturday night's victory over the Hornets, giving Robinson 50 percent more than anybody else in the league this season. But Robinson doesn't think his greatest skill is a skill at all. “It's just effort,” he said. “It's really just effort.” - NY Post
Phoenix Suns superstar Kevin Durant was clutch again at the end - but this time on the defensive end. His block on Lauri Markkanen's corner 3 at the buzzer sealed an exhausting, but exciting 140-137 double-overtime win Sunday night over Utah Jazz before a sellout crowd of 18,206 at Delta Center. Two days ago, Durant hit a dagger 3 to seal a 131-128 thriller as he finished with 38 points, going 6-of-8 from 3, nine rebounds and nine assists. He followed that up with 39 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds and two blocks with the latter one being a game saver - but the game didn't officially end on that rejection. - Arizona Republic
Bronny James warmed up with his No. 16 USC teammates before a game for the first time this season after suffering a cardiac arrest in July during a team workout. James has yet to make his collegiate debut. After his cardiac arrest, he underwent successful surgery to repair what his family referred to as a likely congenital heart defect. "It's awesome having him back and on the team with us and participating with us," USC guard Kobe Johnson said after the Trojans beat Brown, 81-70. "We want him back as soon as possible, but we want him to be as healthy as possible when he comes back. Every day we pray that he keeps getting better and hopefully sometime this year he's able to get on the floor with us." - ESPN.com
Stephen Curry returned to the Golden State Warriors' lineup but couldn't help them end their losing streak as they fell 130-123 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in overtime Saturday. Curry scored 25 points on 8-for-21 shooting and 5-for-11 from 3 in his first game since taking a hard fall Sunday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. - ESPN.com
Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler was ruled out for at least two weeks with an elbow sprain on Nov. 8. Since then, the team has been playing without a traditional center and has moved to using rookie Keyonte George and Ochai Agbaji in the starting lineup. Prior to Kessler's injury the Jazz's defensive rating was ranked 28th. In the games following Kessler's injury, the Jazz have had the 16th-best defensive rating. That's a pretty big jump, but it kind of goes against conventional wisdom considering that Kessler is a defense-first player and the defensive anchor of the team. - Deseret News
Slow starts have plagued the Bulls of late. But they took matters to a new level this time, missing their first 10 shots and committing three turnovers before Zach Lavine's running bank shot at the 4 minute, 48 second mark. They trailed 22-1 at the time, drawing boos from the less-than-capacity crowd. Coach Billy Donovan burned two timeouts in this stretch, although one came to challenge an offensive foul on DeMar DeRozan. Fittingly, the Bulls lost the challenge. - NBC Sports Chicago
The Clippers also got their first win after making a big lineup change. Russell Westbrook came off the bench as the sixth man for the first time as a Clipper. Head coach Ty Lue said Westbrook approached him with the idea to help the team snap its slide. Westbrook, Harden, George, Leonard and Zubac had started the first five games of Harden's Clippers' tenure, but those four stars had been outscored by 20 points during their 76 minutes together entering Friday's game, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Westbrook, who left Friday night without talking to reporters, finished with eight points, three rebounds and two assists in 17 minutes, his fewest since joining the Clippers before the All-Star break last season. - ESPN.com
Bradley Beal will miss at least the next three weeks as a lower back strain continues to plague the start of his tenure with the Phoenix Suns. In a statement, the Suns said the shooting guard will be reevaluated in three weeks. - ESPN.com
The NBA is requiring Charlotte Hornets All-Star guard LaMelo Ball to cover a tattoo below his left ear that the league insists violates rules against exposing commercial logos on players' bodies -- a policy that sources close to Ball contend has been infrequently enforced. Ball has the initials "LF" tattooed on his body, short for LaFrance -- his middle name, and now, his clothing brand. The NBA and Ball have had conversations over the past several weeks regarding the tattoo, and Ball began covering it up prior to Tuesday's loss to Miami to avoid league fines, sources told ESPN. He's expected to continue covering it up for Friday night's in-season tournament game against Milwaukee. - ESPN.com
Marcus Smart's first mini-homecoming with the Boston Celtics won't come on Sunday. The Memphis Grizzlies guard is expected to miss three to five weeks because of a left foot sprain, the team announced Friday. Smart suffered the injury in the first quarter of the 134-107 loss to the Lakers on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He has played in all 11 games this season, but he also dealt with abdominal soreness in the preseason. - Commercial Appeal
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