1:14 AM ET NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets star forward Kevin Durant admitted Saturday night that he has been “thinking too much” throughout the first-round series against the Boston Celtics and that it has been a factor in his poor play. After being held to 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting in a 109-103 loss the
NBA
11:39 PM ET SALT LAKE CITY — With their season likely on the line, the Utah Jazz’s franchise cornerstones — who have one of the NBA’s most heavily scrutinized partnerships — connected. The result: A go-ahead alley-oop from Donovan Mitchell to Rudy Gobert that allowed the Jazz to even the series in Saturday’s Game 4.
3:28 AM ET MINNEAPOLIS — Coming off a lackluster outing in the Minnesota Timberwolves‘ Game 3 loss, Karl-Anthony Towns responded with a prolific performance in Minnesota’s 119-118 win over the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 4 on Saturday night. The best-of-seven series is now deadlocked at 2-2. Towns, a three-time All-Star and the No. 1 pick
3:44 AM ET MINNEAPOLIS — Memphis Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins ripped game officials following the Grizzlies’ 119-118 loss on Saturday in Game 4 of their first-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. “We’ve got to play better, but in my opinion, [this was] one of the most poorly officiated games I’ve ever seen in my NBA
9:54 PM ET SALT LAKE CITY — Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic couldn’t stop smiling despite the Utah Jazz‘s series-tying 100-99 win Saturday in Game 4. Playing playoff basketball is bliss for Doncic, particularly after a strained left calf forced him to sit out the first three games of the Western Conference first-round series. “I’m
1:45 PM ET Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes has been named the 2021-2022 NBA Rookie of the Year, the league announced Saturday. Barnes received 378 points (48 first-place votes). Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley finished in second place with 363 points (43 first-place votes). The 15-point difference between the first- and second-place finishers is the
12:45 PM ET Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic, who has not played since suffering a left calf strain on April 10, will return in Game 4 against the Utah Jazz on Saturday. Coach Jason Kidd said Doncic will be under a minutes restriction during Saturday’s game. “He won’t play all 48 [minutes],” Kidd said. “We’ll
7:30 PM ET DENVER — The Golden State Warriors‘ new small-ball lineup has been so lethal that it had Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone looking for a mythic comparison to the trio of Stephen Curry Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole. Malone said on Saturday that he had one of his assistants do some research for
7:42 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN TORONTO — Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid believes he will be able to play through his right thumb sprain until the playoffs are done, saying that if there is a ligament tear he expects to hold off any sort of surgical procedure until the offseason. “I want to play, so
4:18 PM ET ATLANTA — Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry did not practice Saturday and is considered day-to-day with the left hamstring issue that caused him to sit out the fourth quarter of Friday’s Game 3 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Lowry, who said he underwent treatment “pretty much all night” after the injury, said