Tag: nytimes.com

DALLAS — Cooper Flagg continued his record-setting rookie season Friday, even as his Dallas Mavericks lost their 14th consecutive home game. Flagg scored 51 points in his team’s 138-127 home loss to the Orlando Magic to become the youngest player in NBA history to cross the 50-point threshold. The 19-year-old broke his own record for…

MILWAUKEE — Calling it “against my nature” to sit out games, Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo insisted he is healthy enough to play but is being held out by the only team he has represented in his 13-year NBA career. A league investigation into the matter, as first reported by The Athletic, is ongoing. Advertisement “You…

DALLAS — The Los Angeles Lakers will not have Luka Dončić for the remainder of the regular season, and almost certainly won’t have their star guard available to them whenever they begin the NBA Playoffs. An MRI revealed Dončić suffered a Grade 2 left hamstring strain, the Lakers announced Friday while only revealing he will…

OKLAHOMA CITY — Luka Dončić has a pathway to end-of-season award eligibility despite falling short of the minimum games threshold. According to the NBA’s 65-game participation policy, players can appeal for an “Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge” if they meet a series of factors that include “extraordinary circumstances” where “it was impracticable for him to play in…

SAN FRANCISCO — Kristaps Porziņģis has enjoyed his short time with the Golden State Warriors. The 30-year-old big man, who was acquired before February’s trade deadline from the Atlanta Hawks, is playing well — and most importantly, finally appears to be healthy. He’s finding his rhythm, fitting seamlessly in the locker room and looking forward…

DALLAS — Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said Friday he was “not part of the process” in the infamous Feb. 1, 2025, trade that sent Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick. Kidd’s comments came in response to an accusation from Mavericks minority owner Mark…

A rookie has earned immediate respect. An old dog is learning new tricks. And a tanker is innovating. Let’s open the notebook to run through three NBA trends that have caught my eye this week. Latching onto Knueppel Not all shooters are spacers. And not all spacers are shooters. The two traits are connected. Presumably,…

OKLAHOMA CITY — It was all good just a week ago. On the final Friday of March, the Los Angeles Lakers were preparing to play their first home game after a successful six-game road trip. All-Star point guard Luka Dončić, who dominated during the trip as the Lakers won five of those games, was listed…

The Bounce Newsletter  | This is The Athletic’s daily NBA newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Bounce directly in your inbox. Tonight, we have the women’s Final Four, with Connecticut playing South Carolina (7 ET) and Texas facing UCLA (9:30), setting the stage for Sunday’s championship game. Tomorrow night, we have the men’s Final Four, with Illinois…

So begins the closing stretch of a long, strange NBA regular season. There’s been so much noise, from the federal indictments during opening week to supreme awkwardness on All-Star Weekend. But beautiful basketball has been here for those with open eyes and minds. Now is the time to tap back in as the playoffs pull…