2:56 AM ET Associated Press PHOENIX — Dirk Nowitzki at last began his record-breaking 21st season with the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night, coming off the bench in the first quarter of a 99-89 loss to the Phoenix Suns. No other NBA player has played that many seasons with the same team. “It is good
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2:00 AM ET SAN ANTONIO — Uncharacteristically, the San Antonio Spurs toiled for 14 days below .500 before walloping the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday to even their record. The Spurs then padded the ledger by besting the LA Clippers 125-87 on Thursday for their fourth consecutive win in arguably the most significant test of their
1:45 AM ET Associated Press PHOENIX — T.J. Warren scored a season-high 30 points and the Phoenix Suns snapped a 10-game losing streak by beating the Dallas Mavericks 99-89 on Thursday night. The Dallas loss came in the season debut of Dirk Nowitzki, who hadn’t played yet while recovering from ankle surgery. When he entered
1:30 AM ET HOUSTON — James Harden‘s first bucket of the game gave his Houston Rockets teammates a feeling that this would be a spectacular performance for the reigning MVP. After a couple of jab steps, Harden blew by Los Angeles Lakers guard Lonzo Ball, sliced down the lane and threw down a vicious, lefty
2:08 AM ET HOUSTON — The Los Angeles Lakers found themselves so frustrated by the officiating in the second half of Thursday’s 126-111 loss to the Houston Rockets that several players, LeBron James and Lonzo Ball among them, purposely held their hands behind their backs on a series of defensive possessions to make a point
12:43 AM ET Eric GomezMexico writer MEXICO CITY — NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Thursday he wants more games to be played in Latin America. Speaking before the Orlando Magic faced the Chicago Bulls at the 22,300-seat Arena Ciudad de Mexico, Silver was complimentary of the building, and said he hoped other, similar venues would
9:02 PM ET Malika AndrewsESPN Forward Jabari Parker will no longer be a part of the Chicago Bulls‘ regular rotation, league sources told ESPN. While he is expected to play in Thursday night’s game against the Orlando Magic in Mexico City in the absence of Chandler Hutchison, Parker will no longer see regular minutes, sources
6:18 PM ET The Brooklyn Nets and guard Spencer Dinwiddie have agreed to a three-year contract extension, the team announced Thursday. The deal is for $34 million, league sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. There will be a player option on the third year, sources said. Dinwiddie was eligible for four years and $47 million, but
11:32 PM ET Dirk Nowitzki made his long-awaited season debut Thursday night after missing the Dallas Mavericks‘ first 26 games of the season recovering from surgery on his left ankle. When Nowitzki stepped on the court, he tied the NBA record by playing in his 21st season. Nowitzki wasn’t the only player making a delayed
4:00 PM ET Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas will miss at least four weeks after undergoing surgery on his left thumb, the team announced Thursday. The surgery was performed at Stanford Medical Center in Palo Alto, California, by Dr. Jeffrey Yao, a specialist in hand, wrist and elbow surgery. After the Raptors swept the season