WASHINGTON — Joel Embiid will miss the 76ers’ game at the Wizards on Wednesday with an illness, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey confirmed to The Philadelphia Inquirer Wednesday afternoon.

Morey’s confirmation when reached by The Inquirer came after Embiid took to social media to refute the team’s official designation that...Read more

CHICAGO — Workers were tearing down the court at the near-empty United Center late Sunday afternoon after Michigan’s win over Tennessee when a roar erupted from the nearby media workroom.

It was the same sound heard in bars, restaurants and living rooms across America after UConn freshman Braylon Mullins sank the game-winning 3-pointer with...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — First, let’s acknowledge, and applaud, the obvious:

Hiring Chris Mack as the men’s basketball coach at USF is a potential game-changer.

And it’s not just because he arrives with as many NCAA Tournament appearances as a head coach — that would be nine — as the previous seven USF basketball hires had combined.

(...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic, with the eyes of five defenders fixed on him in the paint, faked a lob pass. He threatened to wrap a pass around Cleveland center Thomas Bryant’s back. Instead, the Lakers superstar pulled up straight over the top of Bryant’s outstretched arm, dropping a fadeaway jumper softly through the net.

Doncic smiled ...Read more

Forget about the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed. The Knicks are closer to falling out of the East’s top-three than they are to catching the Boston Celtics — or the top-seeded Detroit Pistons — in the standings.

And that’s bad news, because the way this team is playing in the tail end of a season littered with championship ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — After suffering the largest loss in franchise history Sunday at Toronto (a 52-point drubbing), Magic coach Jamahl Mosley wanted his team to throw the first punch Tuesday night against the Suns at Kia Center.

Orlando, which lost to Phoenix in double-overtime in late-February, did just that by jumping ahead by 16 points in the ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets blinked once Tuesday night and the Charlotte Hornets took the game. Charles Lee’s group ripped off a 13-0 run in the opening minutes at Barclays Center, and Brooklyn spent the rest of the night chasing in an 117-86 loss.

The Nets fell to 18-58 and trailed by as many as 35 points in a game that was over before it...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — If my social media accounts were representative, Braylon Mullins’ 3-point dagger to give Connecticut an epic 73-72 NCAA Tournament upset of Duke on Sunday set off a bash in the Big Blue Nation.

“I knew I hated @DukeMBB but I didn’t realize how much I hated them until I jumped out of my chair when Mullins hit that shot,�...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors’ biggest issue is the same as it ever was.

It’s the same problem that hung over the locker room before the first whistle of this season even blew. It’s the one fatal flaw Joe Lacob’s checkbook can’t cover up, and Steve Kerr’s motion offense can’t outrun:

Time.

The Warriors had too much of it at the...Read more

NEW YORK — The Nets will enter this year’s draft with their own first-round pick and the NBA’s third-best lottery odds entering Tuesday, along with two second-round picks.

Brooklyn is hoping the pingpong balls bounce its way and put AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson or Cameron Boozer within reach, but that’s never guaranteed. So as the men�...Read more

The Chicago Bulls announced Monday that they have waived guard Jaden Ivey for "conduct detrimental to the team," soon after the former first-round draft pick made anti-gay comments on Instagram Live.

The move came less than two months after Chicago acquired Ivey from the Detroit Pistons. In recent days, the fourth-year player has posted several...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — On Monday night, when it was time to make predictions between the Sixers and the Miami Heat on NBC’s pregame broadcast, Evan Turner had a few fighting words for the city of Philadelphia.

“I can’t stand Philadelphia,” Turner said.

Turner, who played 10 seasons in the NBA, spent four of them in Philly after getting ...Read more

CHICAGO — Disaster could not have dominated this season more thoroughly for the Chicago Bulls.

A sub-.400 record, a laundry list of injuries and the departure of half the team’s most beloved players would have been bad enough. But on Monday, the team waived Jaden Ivey — who had spent a total of only 115 minutes on a basketball court in a ...Read more

STORRS, Conn. — The 20 seconds between Silas Demary Jr. deflecting Cayden Boozer’s pass near half court and the UConn bench recollecting itself for one final inbound pass to go to the Final Four were delirious.

Dan Hurley’s eyes got wide, like everyone else in the arena, at the steal. He jerked his hands as if he were going to direct a ...Read more

NEW YORK — For the second season in a row, the Final Four does not feature a single Cinderella.

It’s likely a symptom of the NCAA’s name, image and likeness (NIL) and transfer-portal era, in which players possess unprecedented mobility and bigger-budgeted programs can poach the standouts from smaller schools.

That’s not to say this ...Read more

HOUSTON — Josh Whitman glanced at his phone for a moment Saturday night amid all of the hugging, celebrating and reflecting on Illinois’ 71-59 win over Iowa in the Elite Eight.

The Illinois athletic director had 110 text messages in his inbox, everyone wanting to share their congratulations and excitement for the Illini’s first Final Four...Read more

The Lakers followed the lead of their oldest member, the triple-double producing LeBron James, in dispatching the Wizards 120-101 at Crypto.com Arena on Monday night.

Two days off between games left James looking spry, with lob dunks and dunks on the fast break contributing to his 21 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. James was eight for 16 ...Read more

Anthony Edwards wasn’t in that big of a hurry to get back from injury.

As the Minnesota Timberwolves and Dallas Mavericks tipped off Monday Edwards wasn’t present on the floor, even though he was listed in the starting lineup. It turned out he was late getting to the floor (the second time this has happened in his career), and Mike Conley ...Read more