OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma City Thunder forward Carmelo Anthony plans to opt in and take the $28 million he is due next season.The New York Times first reported the 34-year-old Anthony's decision to bypass the chance to become a free agent. A person with knowledge of details confirmed Anthony's choice to The Associated Press on Friday night. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the situation publicly.The Thunder traded for Anthony and Paul George to join Russell Westbrook before last season, moves that gave them high hopes of challenging Golden State in the West. It didn't work out as planned.The 34-year-old Anthony had been the headliner his entire career — he's 19th in NBA history with 25,417 points — but he was more of a catch-and-shoot scorer last season instead of the isolation specialist he had always been. He averaged 16.2 points per game, but struggled at times in his new role. His playing time dwindled in the playoffs and he... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma City Thunder forward Carmelo Anthony plans to opt in and take the $28 million he is due next season.The New York Times first reported the 34-year-old Anthony's decision to bypass the chance to become a free agent. A person with knowledge of details confirmed Anthony's choice to The Associated Press on Friday night. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the situation publicly.The Thunder traded for Anthony and Paul George to join Russell Westbrook before last season, moves that gave them high hopes of challenging Golden State in the West. It didn't work out as planned.The 34-year-old Anthony had been the headliner his entire career — he's 19th in NBA history with 25,417 points — but he was more of a catch-and-shoot scorer last season instead of the isolation specialist he had always been. He averaged 16.2 points per game, but struggled at times in his new role. His playing time dwindled in the playoffs and he... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Paul George said all the right things when asked if he'd consider staying with the Oklahoma City Thunder instead of leaving in free agency this summer."They honestly check the boxes where I needed those boxes to be checked from what a player wants and needs out of a front office, out of a medical group, out of teammates, out of a coaching staff," George said Saturday, a day after the Thunder lost their first-round playoff series to Utah 4-2. "I mean, honestly, I can't say it any more than that. They checked the boxes on what needs to be checked."George's decision will largely determine if a rare gamble by general manager Sam Presti pays off. The Thunder bucked their tendencies and went for big splashes before this season, trading for George and Carmelo Anthony to join Russell Westbrook in hopes of rejoining the NBA's elite.It didn't work — or at least, it hasn't yet. Now, the Thunder and their fans are in an eerily familiar position. Kevin Durant had good things to... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The last time Carmelo Anthony was in the playoffs, he was with the New York Knicks facing rising star Paul George and the Indiana Pacers back in 2013.Now, Anthony and George are teammates with the Oklahoma City Thunder. They join Russell Westbrook in a quest for their first NBA title, starting Sunday when the Thunder host the Utah Jazz in Game 1 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series.Because it's been so long, Anthony appreciates the opportunity to play in the postseason. He came to Oklahoma City in a trade before training camp expecting to compete for an NBA title."It's important," he said. "I'm here now, so ain't no looking back. I'm here. It's important, it's exciting. At the same time, I'm not here just to say I made it back to the playoffs. I'm here to make a statement as a team and prove why we put this team together. This is the place where I belong, we belong, and we have an opportunity to start something good on Sunday."Westbrook became the... [More]

Editors:To help you with the upcoming NBA postseason, here are some of AP's plans. Please direct questions to Oscar Dixon (odixon@ap.org). Times are ET. This digest will be updated.PLAYOFF COVERAGE— Each series will get a preview, 650-750 words.— Game coverage will follow the regular-season format, with final updates of about 750 words. Sidebars on merit.— During the early rounds, we will again move BKN--TIPOFF each day until the conference finals, featuring the top story lines looking ahead to the next day's games.— Team wrapups will move the day after the regular season in most cases.___UPCOMING FEATURESBKN--PLAYOFFS SETMIAMI — Finally, the brackets will be set. A race that went to the end in both conferences — just to decide who got in out West, and to decide who plays who in the East — is over, and the long road to the NBA Finals is now underway. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. UPCOMING: 650 words, photos by 3 a.m. THURSDAYBKN--WARRIORS-DIFFERENT PATHOAKLAND, Calif. — Stephen Curry... [More]

Editors:To help you with the upcoming NBA postseason, here are some of AP's plans. Please direct questions to Oscar Dixon (odixon@ap.org). Times are ET. This digest will be updated.PLAYOFF COVERAGE— Each series will get a preview, 650-750 words.— Game coverage will follow the regular-season format, with final updates of about 750 words. Sidebars on merit.— During the early rounds, we will again move BKN--TIPOFF each day until the conference finals, featuring the top story lines looking ahead to the next day's games.— Team wrapups will move the day after the regular season in most cases.___UPCOMING FEATURESBKN--THE FINAL DAYMIAMI — The last day of the NBA season has arrived, with some statistical races still to be decided and perhaps some milestones even within reach. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. UPCOMING: 650 words, photos. TUESDAYNOTE: Story will move shortly after Tuesday's games are complete___BKN--OLADIPO-INDIANA'S BEST MANINDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers thought Victor Oladipo... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Carmelo Anthony has been the No. 1 option for whatever team he has played on during most of his basketball career.He knew that wasn't going to be the case when he arrived in Oklahoma City, though it's safe to say things haven't gone as he expected when he signed up to be part the league's next Big Three.Playing alongside Russell Westbrook and Paul George, Anthony and the Thunder are headed to the playoffs . He is the Thunder's third-leading scorer, yet at times it feels like he the fourth option behind center Steven Adams.Anthony isn't complaining."Acceptance of what I have to do here and what is needed of me," Anthony said. "I think the other guys on the team, after they started playing with each other more and more, we started figuring out each other's game. We figured out what each other brings to the game."He has said he wants to win, and he is not just talking the talk.Late in a critical game against the Denver Nuggets a few weeks ago , Anthony chose not to re-enter... [More]

Editors:To help you with the upcoming NBA postseason, here are some of AP's plans. Please direct questions to Oscar Dixon (odixon@ap.org). Times are ET. This digest will be updated.PLAYOFF COVERAGE— Each series will get a preview, 650-750 words.— Game coverage will follow the regular-season format, with final updates of about 750 words. Sidebars on merit.— During the early rounds, we will again move BKN--TIPOFF each day until the conference finals, featuring the top story lines looking ahead to the next day's games.— Team wrapups will move the day after the regular season in most cases.___UPCOMING FEATURESBKN-PLAYOFFS-THE REFSMIAMI — The player-referee relationship is going to be a focus again in these playoffs. It was a season where referee Courtney Kirkland was taken off the floor for a week for getting too aggressive with Golden State's Shaun Livingston, where Warriors star Kevin Durant — who'd been ejected once in his first nine seasons — got kicked out of five games, where even LeBron... [More]

Editors:To help you with the upcoming NBA postseason, here are some of AP's plans. Please direct questions to Oscar Dixon (odixon@ap.org). Times are ET. This digest will be updated.PLAYOFF COVERAGE— Each series will get a preview, 650-750 words.— Game coverage will follow the regular-season format, with final updates of about 750 words. Sidebars on merit.— During the early rounds, we will again move BKN--TIPOFF each day until the conference finals, featuring the top story lines looking ahead to the next day's games.— Team wrapups will move the day after the regular season in most cases.___UPCOMING FEATURESBKN--ROCKETS-THEIR TIMEHOUSTON — Mike D'Antoni, James Harden and Chris Paul haven't been able to get it done in the postseason. This year may be different. While the trio have experienced numerous playoff heartbreaks in their careers, they seem to have all the championship pieces to make a title run. By Krisitie Reiken. UPCOMING: 750 words, photos by 3 a.m. MONDAYAlso:— BKN--NBA Playoff... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Russell Westbrook darted into the lane time and time again, hitting the shot, drawing a foul or finding an open teammate.At the other end of the court, he lingered under the boards, pulling down one rebound after another — usually against players taller than him.In other words, just another night for Mr. Triple-Double .Westbrook joined a very exclusive club Wednesday by putting up double figures in points, assists and rebounds for the 100th time in his career, a feat accomplished by only three other players.Oscar Robertson. Magic Johnson. Jason Kidd.Not bad company."I'm just happy to be a part of the crew with those guys," Westbrook said after leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 119-107 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.It was another vintage performance by the 6-foot-3 point guard .After Paul George went down with a groin injury in the third quarter, Westbrook took over in the fourth.He guided a 16-0 run that suddenly turned a back-and-forth game — it was tied, in fact,... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Golden State forward Draymond Green was fined $50,000 by the NBA on Thursday for directing inappropriate and offensive language toward a game official two days earlier, and he was hardly the only member of the Warriors to lose his cool.Green was ejected with 8:13 remaining in the game after a second technical for arguing with the officials, specifically female referee Lauren Holtkamp. The NBA said the specific incident for which he was penalized came in the second quarter of the Warriors' 125-105 home loss to Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.The defending champion Warriors had five technicals in all, prompting general manager Bob Myers to address the topic with the team Thursday ahead of a home game against Dallas."With great expectations comes great scrutiny. So how do we live in that? What's the best way to be in that?" Myers said. "So, empathetic toward the role and the place they have in all this as players as the most visible parts of our organization, the most... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook and forward Carmelo Anthony both missed the Thunder's game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night because of ankle injuries.Anthony sprained his right ankle in the first quarter of the Thunder's 125-105 win at the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night. Westbrook is dealing with a sprained left ankle, but it is not known when the injury happened.The Thunder are playing the Lakers for the second time in five days. They dropped the first meeting 108-104 in Oklahoma City on Sunday. Westbrook had 36 points and nine assists in the loss, and Anthony had 10 points and 13 rebounds.Raymond Felton was expected to start at point guard in place of Westbrook, while Jerami Grant was likely to take Anthony's place in the starting lineup. Grant had 16 points, four rebounds and three blocked shots in 35 minutes against the Warriors filling in for Anthony.___More AP basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Golden State forward Draymond Green was fined $50,000 by the NBA on Thursday for directing inappropriate and offensive language toward a game official two days earlier, and he was hardly the only member of the Warriors to lose his cool.Green was ejected with 8:13 remaining in the game after a second technical for arguing with the officials, specifically female referee Lauren Holtkamp. The NBA said the specific incident for which he was penalized came in the second quarter of the Warriors' 125-105 home loss to Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.The defending champion Warriors had five technicals in all, prompting general manager Bob Myers to address the topic with the team Thursday ahead of a home game against Dallas."With great expectations comes great scrutiny. So how do we live in that? What's the best way to be in that?" Myers said. "So, empathetic toward the role and the place they have in all this as players as the most visible parts of our organization, the most... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Golden State forward Draymond Green was fined $50,000 by the NBA on Thursday for directing inappropriate and offensive language toward a game official two days earlier, and he was hardly the only member of the Warriors to lose his cool.Green was ejected with 8:13 remaining in the game after a second technical for arguing with the officials, specifically female referee Lauren Holtkamp. The NBA said the specific incident for which he was penalized came in the second quarter of the Warriors' 125-105 home loss to Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.The defending champion Warriors had five technicals in all, prompting general manager Bob Myers to address the topic with the team Thursday ahead of a home game against Dallas. Green had two, coach Steve Kerr one, and Andre Iguodala and David West the two others."It's not a good look," Kerr said about Myers' words. "We need to look more professional, to act more professional and to be more poised and to represent our team in a better... [More]

F Jerami Grant (hip contusion) has been given the green light to play.

G Jerami Grant sat with a hip injury Thursday in Mexco City.

F Jerami Grant started in place of Carmelo Anthony, scoring 10 points in his fifth career start.

F Jerami Grant came off the bench to score 13 points Wednesday.

F Jerami Grant came off the Thunder bench to post 15 points Wednesday in a loss to the Bulls.

F Jerian Grant's two free throws with 10.6 seconds remaining in overtime finished off a win that seemed so unlikely earlier in the second half.