OAKLAND, Calif. -- A pump fake and dribble to the left, rise, release and swish.

Trevor Ariza's smooth stroke from the right corner happened during a defensive breakdown for the Golden State Warriors in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals, because a good defensive possession doesn't end with an open Ariza three-pointer.

"We have to have ...Read more

CLEVELAND -- The Cavaliers returned to Quicken Loans Arena on Saturday night in need of a win in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Following two less-than-impressive performances in Boston, the prospect of trailing the Celtics three games to none in a best-of-seven series was certainly not appealing to LeBron James and company.

With ...Read more

OAKLAND, Calif. -- It usually only requires Klay Thompson a few seconds to hold the ball before drilling a shot. Naturally, it only took a few seconds for Thompson to explain how he will fix his rough performance in the Warriors' Game 2 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.

"I'll be better tomorrow," Thompson said for when the Warriors play...Read more

MIAMI -- Udonis Haslem is not sure about the role going forward. But he knows it will about the Culture.

That could mean a 16th season with the Miami Heat. It could eventually be in the front office. But he reiterated Saturday that it will not be in coaching.

Because Haslem insists what matters most to him is to keep it real, even if it means ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Kentucky coach John Calipari's reaction to the recent Supreme Court ruling allowing individual states to allow legal gambling on sports events? A shrug.

"There is all this money out here, and the gambling is not going away," Calipari said Friday at the NBA draft combine. "It's there. Maybe everybody shares in it because it's going to...Read more

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Warriors forward Kevin Durant kept shaking his head over what he saw and what he heard.

As he sat at an interview table behind a basket on the team's practice court on Friday, Durant observed Warriors guard Stephen Curry swishing countless 3-pointers, jump shots and free-throws. As he sat on that interview table, though, ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Michael Porter Jr. sees himself as the best player in the NBA draft.

Do the 76ers agree? If so, would they be willing to trade up to select the Missouri small forward, who missed most of his freshman season because of back surgery?

Porter, who measured 6-foot-91/4 without shoes here at the NBA draft combine, is projected to go ...Read more

CHICAGO -- SMU's Shake Milton called it "different."

Penn State's Tony Carr said it was "pretty cool."

NBA draft combine participants were quick to mention the Detroit Pistons' use of virtual reality technology during interviews Thursday.

The Pistons contingent had prospects don a virtual reality headset.

Players were put in different ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Kansas center Udoka Azubuike had a strong showing during the first day of scrimmages at the NBA draft combine here, but he knows that might not change the league's perception of him as a prospect who could use another season or two at KU.

"Pretty much, I'm not in a hurry," Azubuike said after scoring 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting and...Read more

CHICAGO -- NBA scouts, general managers, coaches and team presidents sat in two rows of folding chairs around the court at the Quest Multisport Gym on Thursday at the NBA's annual scouting combine. Some clacked away on the keyboards of their laptops, other scribbled notes on legal pads as many of the world's top basketball prospects ran up and ...Read more

Nike has announced it will sell a special edition Michael Jordan Bulls jersey on May 31 commemorating the last of his NBA championships nearly 20 years ago.

Proceeds from the jersey sales -- tied to "The Last Dance," the just-announced 10-hour Netflix and ESPN Films documentary on Jordan and his 1990 Bulls title teams set for next year -- will ...Read more

MIAMI -- Getting into the room with free agents hasn't been a problem for the Miami Heat in recent years, even if the results with Kevin Durant and Gordon Hayward have. Over the next month, the Heat face an even greater challenge -- getting into the room with NBA draft prospects.

Not only do the Heat stand with the Toronto Raptors at the only ...Read more

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. -- While the ACC exited its spring meetings without any formal recommendations regarding the Rice Commission's report on the future of college basketball, it certainly had something to say about the sport. The conference voted to propose legislation to the NCAA that would expand the tournament from 68 to 72 teams, essentially...Read more

HOUSTON -- Only two days passed, and the Warriors and Rockets became entirely different teams.

The Warriors' offensive depth suddenly shrank. The Rockets suddenly changed from an iso-heavy team to one that also moved the ball. And the Warriors suddenly showed their regular-season sloppiness instead of postseason intensity.

Mix those trends ...Read more

CHICAGO -- No surprise here.

The 76ers talented duo of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid are finalists for NBA awards.

Simmons, Utah Jazz shooting guard Donovan Mitchell and Boston Celtics small forward Jayson Tatum are the rookie-of-the-year finalists. Meanwhile, Embiid, Jazz center Rudy Gobert and New Orleans Pelicans big man Anthony Davis are the...Read more

BOSTON -- Tuesday night wasn't the first time this season Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue questioned his team's toughness.

But the fact that Lue said much the same after a 32-point home loss to the Houston Rockets on Feb. 3 as he did after a 13-point setback to the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals may not bode well for the ...Read more