MINNEAPOLIS — Timberwolves All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns didn't play the entire second quarter of Tuesday's Game 2 playoff series against Phoenix because of second-quarter foul trouble.

"I was pretty motivated," he said after a 105-92 victory at Target Center. "Pretty motivated."

He followed that second quarter idled by three first-...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The Timberwolves are headed to Phoenix with a 2-0 series lead, and they leaned on No. 3 to get there.

The best player on the floor Tuesday night at Target Center was Wolves forward Jaden McDaniels, who scored a game-high 25 points and played terrific defense on Suns star Kevin Durant.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven, first-round ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — All of the transformations experienced by the 76ers this season were overshadowed by one massive makeover.

It delighted the fans, put the NBA on notice, and silenced critics who had long since hardened their opinions. It was a young point guard who stepped in and filled James Harden’s shoes without any problem.

You know ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Following the 76ers’ crushing, last-minute Game 2 loss to the New York Knicks on Monday night, Joel Embiid called the officiating “[bleeping] unacceptable.”

The Last Two Minute Report released by the NBA Tuesday evening revealed that the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player had a point.

Further review determined that Sixers...Read more

His head bowed, his shoulders slumped, his hands shielding the glare from the camera lights circled above him, Joel Embiid sat at his locker and ripped the officiating and said it didn’t matter anyway because the Sixers were going to win the series.

Other than that, it was a ho-hum ending to a ho-hum night.

“We’re going to win this ...Read more

NEW YORK — Two-time All-Star Epiphanny Prince announced her retirement Tuesday after 14 WNBA seasons. The Brooklyn native and local prep star’s basketball career ends after showcasing her scoring talents on multiple teams — both overseas and in the states. She won a WNBA championship in 2020 with the Seattle Storm

“Officially retired,�...Read more

LAS VEGAS — After just over a year, former Raiders tight end Darren Waller and Aces guard Kelsey Plum have called it quits on their marriage.

The sports stars tied in the knot in Las Vegas on March 4, 2023.

On Tuesday, a petition for divorce was filed in Clark County for Kelsey Christine Plum and Darren Charles Waller.

Plum shared a message...Read more

DENVER — A video purporting to show the brother of Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic punching a fan after the Nuggets’ game vs. the Los Angeles Lakers has gone viral on social media.

The TikTok video posted following the game at Ball Arena displays text that says, “Jokic brothers going wild,” with a flushed-face emoji. It shows two men ...Read more

DENVER — The collapse ended with a punch to the face, a blow to the ears, a dagger through the heart.

The collapse of a million Laker mistakes ended with one Denver Nuggets masterpiece, the ugliness of pretenders trumped by the beauty of champions.

Jamal Murray hit a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer, Ball Arena shook with an avalanche of glee, ...Read more

NEW YORK — The ending — the chaos and collisions and the stones that it took Donte DiVincenzo to take that second three-point shot and make it — is what everyone will remember, but really, it’s only the beginning. Lawdy, finally, the 76ers and New York Knicks are starting to hate each other. Look at what we’ve been missing.

Joel ...Read more

The first full weekend of the NBA playoffs are already in the books, leaving a few lasting memories and sparking intrigue surrounding the remainder of each opening-round series.

Around here, that also usually means one thing: Another disappointing campaign by Charlotte’s pro basketball team is finally in the rearview mirror.

While 16 teams ...Read more

They were solved at last, an impossible puzzle that had somehow eluded the Lakers’ best mental and physical efforts for more than a year, for nine in a row of these increasingly familiar meetings.

Nikola Jokic was overmatched for once in his life, Jamal Murray was a man walking without rhythm, and not even the most wide-open backyard 3-...Read more

What are you going to do about it, Orlando?

How are you going to respond, Magic?

That’s what your fans want to know today after Monday night’s 96-86 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of this Eastern Conference playoff series.

The Cavaliers did what they had to during the first two playoff games. They held serve on their home court...Read more

What are you going to do about it, Orlando?

How are you going to respond, Magic?

That’s what your fans want to know today after Monday night’s 96-86 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of this Eastern Conference playoff series.

The Cavaliers did what they had to during the first two playoff games. They held serve on their home court...Read more

CLEVELAND — Magic guard Jalen Suggs put no weight on his left leg as he was carried by teammates to Orlando‘s locker room late in the first quarter of Game 2 against the Cavs on Monday night.

Somehow, someway he was able to return to the court to start the third quarter but that didn’t change the final result in the second game of the ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Philadelphia 76ers continued to leave Josh Hart open in Game 2 after the Knicks guard torched them with four 3-pointers in Game 1. However, while his shots were falling again on Monday, it was Hart’s usual brand of hustle and awareness that helped the Knicks escape victorious.

With the Knicks down two — after a friendly ...Read more

Jordi Fernandez was officially named the Nets’ 24th head coach on Monday after days of speculation. General manager Sean Marks will introduce the 41-year-old at a press conference on Wednesday in Brooklyn, per release.

The Badalona, Spain, native joins the Nets after spending two seasons as an associate head coach for the Kings under head ...Read more

There is a chair in front of Michael Porter Jr.’s locker where the artwork rests. It was a gift from teammates Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jamal Murray, a reminder that there is no paved road back to an NBA title. It reads simply: “I am going to do today what others won’t, so that tomorrow I can do what others can’t.”

Porter looked ...Read more

Joel Embiid was feeling “pretty good” a day after the 76ers superstar’s latest injury concern, according to his coach, but was officially listed as questionable for Monday’s Game 2 against the Knicks.

Embiid missed the final 2:37 of the second quarter of Game 1 on Saturday after appearing to tweak his left knee during an emphatic alley-...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The final word came down late Sunday morning.

The inflammation in Kawhi Leonard’s right knee kept him out of the Clippers’ playoff opener against the Dallas Mavericks.

And so Paul George, James Harden and the rest of Clippers coach Tyronn Lue’s group had to press forward without their best player.

Harden and George did ...Read more