DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks are making another run at DeAndre Jordan, three years after the center jilted them in free agency to stay with the Los Angeles Clippers.Jordan has opted out of the final year of that contract he signed with LA in 2015, and the Mavericks intend to pursue him as an unrestricted free agent, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Friday.Dallas also intends to decline the $5 million club option on Dirk Nowitzki's contract and re-sign him once its salary structure is more settled, the person told the AP on condition of anonymity because the sides are not publicly commenting on moves ahead of free agency opening Sunday.The move on Nowitzki is designed to create more room under the salary cap, as were the decisions to rescind qualifying offers to shooting guard Doug McDermott and center Salah Mejri, making both unrestricted free agents.Jordan was set to make $24.1 million under the four-year, $87.6 million contract he signed to stay... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic didn't get compared to Larry Bird when he was introduced a day after the Dallas Mavericks traded up to get the third overall pick in the NBA draft.For president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson, that's progress based on his last experience of getting a tender-aged European in hopes of lifting the Mavericks out of the doldrums.Twenty years later, Dirk Nowitzki is the highest-scoring foreign-born player in league history. Back then, the big German wasn't remotely comparable to Larry Legend — and his rough first two years proved it.So ask Nelson about a player the Mavericks clearly coveted heading into the draft in Doncic, and he'll choose his words carefully regarding the 19-year-old from Slovenia. Doncic won't turn 20 until after the All-Star break of his rookie season, which is expected to be Nowitzki's record 21st with one franchise."Dirk and I had a long talk coming in," Nelson said about the player Dallas drafted days after his 20th birthday in 1998."We're... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Dirk Nowitzki's 21st NBA season will include a trip in China.His Dallas Mavericks will play a pair of preseason games against the Philadelphia 76ers there, 10 years after Nowitzki played for Germany in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. He will become the first player in NBA history to play 21 seasons with the same franchise.The league announced Tuesday that the Mavericks and 76ers will meet Oct. 5 in Shanghai and then Oct. 8 in Shenzhen.The 76ers, who are back in the playoffs this season, have a large international fan base. They are led by Joel Embiid, a native of Cameroon, and Australian rookie Ben Simmons.Dallas and Philadelphia both will be playing in China for the first time. The games will be the NBA's 25th and 26th in China, which is passionate about basketball and will host the 2019 Basketball World Cup.

DALLAS (AP) — Dirk Nowitzki plans to become the first player to spend all 21 seasons with the same NBA franchise.Dennis Smith Jr. will be half the German star's age when the Dallas Mavericks open next season looking to end the first two-year playoff drought in nearly two decades. The team posted its worst record since 1997-98, the year before Nowitzki arrived.The No. 9 overall pick who turned 20 early in what ended up as a solid rookie season, Smith figures to have a new teammate facing high expectations the way he did. Dallas will pick no lower than seventh in June.Smith will have at least one thing in common with Nowitzki, who turns 40 this summer. They want the Mavericks to be regulars in the postseason again, the way they were before the current swoon."I've been in a couple of arenas that are playoff teams, and I just witnessed the atmosphere," Smith said. "I can only imagine how it is playoff time."It's certainly better than 24-58, tied with Atlanta for the league's third-worst record.... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Dirk Nowitzki's 20th season is over a few games early after the Dallas Mavericks star had surgery on his left ankle.Now the question is whether the 7-foot German will play as a 40-year-old after saying he intends to return for a 21st season, all with the Mavericks. Nowitzki could be the first to play that long with one franchise.The team said Thursday that Nowitzki underwent a procedure to clear out unhealthy tissue, called surgical debridement. It was performed at a Dallas medical clinic.Nowitzki, who turns 40 in June, played his final game of the season at home against Portland on Tuesday.The 2007 MVP didn't make the final road trip, which started in Orlando on Wednesday. The lottery-bound Mavericks have games at Detroit and Philadelphia before finishing the season at home Tuesday against Phoenix.Nowitzki averaged 12 points and 5.7 rebounds in 77 games, a record for a player's 20th season. The 13-time All-Star shot 41 percent from 3-point range, his first time over 40 percent... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Dirk Nowitzki's 20th season is over a few games early after the Dallas Mavericks star had surgery on his left ankle.The team said Thursday that Nowitzki underwent a procedure to clear out unhealthy tissue, called surgical debridement. It was performed at a Dallas medical clinic.The 39-year-old Nowitzki played his final game of the season at home against Portland on Tuesday. He has said he plans to return for a 21st season for the only NBA team he has ever played for.The 2007 NBA MVP and 2011 Finals MVP when Dallas won its only title, Nowitzki averaged 12 points and 5.7 rebounds in 77 games, a record for a player's 20th season.After games at Detroit and Philadelphia, the lottery-bound Mavericks finish the season at home Tuesday against Phoenix.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The struggling Sacramento Kings find themselves in the national spotlight and it has nothing to do with another disappointing NBA season in their sparkling new 2-year-old arena.Instead of looking ahead to the draft lottery as they wind down their 12th consecutive losing season, the Kings — like many nationwide — have turned their attention to demonstrators who have joined hand-in-hand on game nights to block entrances to the building.A wave of protests have followed the March 18 fatal shooting by police of Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old unarmed black man.Current and former Kings players have been supportive of both the Clark family and the protesters.Clark "could have been any of us," Kings player Garrett Temple said Friday at a community gathering to support black youth that the Kings helped organize.Temple joined teammate Vice Carter and former Kings player Doug Christie at a South Sacramento church. Temple said he believes he is meant to speak out about Clark... [More]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The struggling Sacramento Kings find themselves in the national spotlight and it has nothing to do with another disappointing NBA season in their sparkling new 2-year-old arena.Instead of looking ahead to the draft lottery as they wind down their 12th consecutive losing season, the Kings - like many nationwide - have turned their attention to demonstrators who have joined hand-in-hand on game nights to block entrances to the building.The wave of protests stem from the March 18 fatal shooting by police of Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old unarmed black man.Kings players are at the center of the demonstrations but they have embraced their role in the situation and have been supportive of both the Clark family and the protesters."This organization has really stepped to the forefront and I wanted to use my voice as much as I could to say to try to say what I believed was right and true," Kings player Garrett Temple said. "There are a lot of different perspectives and a... [More]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The struggling Sacramento Kings find themselves in the national spotlight and it has nothing to do with another disappointing NBA season in their sparkling new two-year-old arena.Instead of looking ahead to the draft lottery as they wind down their 12th consecutive losing season, the Kings — like many nationwide — have turned their attention to demonstrators who have joined hand-in-hand on game nights to block entrances to the building.The wave of protests stem from the March 18 fatal shooting by police of Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old unarmed black man.Kings are at the center of the demonstrations but they have embraced their role in the situation and have been supportive of both the Clark family and the protesters."This organization has really stepped to the forefront and I wanted to use my voice as much as I could to say to try to say what I believed was right and true," Kings player Garrett Temple said. "There are a lot of different perspectives and a lot of... [More]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The struggling Sacramento Kings find themselves in the national spotlight and it has nothing to do with another disappointing NBA season in their sparkling new two-year-old arena.Instead of looking ahead to the draft lottery as they wind down their 12th consecutive losing season, the Kings — like many nationwide — have turned their attention to demonstrators who have joined hand-in-hand on game nights to block entrances to the building.The wave of protests stem from the March 18 fatal shooting by police of Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old unarmed black man.Kings are at the center of the demonstrations but they have embraced their role in the situation and have been supportive of both the Clark family and the protesters."This organization has really stepped to the forefront and I wanted to use my voice as much as I could to say to try to say what I believed was right and true," Kings player Garrett Temple said. "There are a lot of different perspectives and a lot of... [More]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The struggling Sacramento Kings find themselves in the national spotlight and it has nothing to do with another disappointing NBA season in their sparkling new two-year-old arena.Instead of looking ahead to the draft lottery as they wind down their 12th consecutive losing season, the Kings — like many nationwide — have turned their attention to demonstrators who have joined hand-in-hand on game nights to block entrances to the building.The wave of protests stem from the March 18 fatal shooting by police of Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old unarmed black man.The Kings have embraced their role in the situation and have been supportive of both the Clark family and the protesters."This organization has really stepped to the forefront and I wanted to use my voice as much as I could to say to try to say what I believed was right and true," Kings player Garrett Temple said. "There are a lot of different perspectives and a lot of different things to take into account but it's... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — After 20 years in the NBA, Dirk Nowitzki can't be fooled.He knows when teams aren't giving an honest effort, when they are out there playing but not playing to win."It's pretty obvious," Nowitzki said.While easy to spot, tanking is not so easy to stop, the NBA is finding.It's a problem for the league office, which has fined owners, chastised teams and sent out league-wide memos on the topic. And with big brother watching, teams are abiding by the letter of the law, but arguably not the spirit of its intent.Tanking is viewed as a solution — sometimes the only one — for some teams and their fans, hoping something good can come from being bad if they cash in at the lottery and land a top draft pick.Nearly a third of the 30 NBA teams are brutally bad this season, and it's hard to believe some aren't losing on purpose. Phoenix, Memphis, Atlanta, Orlando, Dallas, Sacramento, Brooklyn, Chicago and New York are all on track to lose 50 or more games, and only the Nets aren't motivated... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — After 20 years in the NBA, Dirk Nowitzki can't be fooled.He knows when teams aren't giving an honest effort, when they are out there playing but not playing to win."It's pretty obvious," Nowitzki said.Easy to spot, the NBA is finding tanking not so easy to stop.It's a problem for the league office, which has fined owners, chastised teams and sent out league-wide memos on the topic. And with big brother watching, teams are abiding by the letter of the law, but arguably not the spirit of its intent.Tanking is viewed as a solution — sometimes the only one — for some teams and their fans, hoping something good can come from being bad if they cash in at the lottery and land a top draft pick.Nearly a third of the 30 NBA teams are brutally bad this season and it's hard to believe some aren't losing on purpose. Phoenix, Memphis, Atlanta, Orlando, Dallas, Sacramento, Brooklyn, Chicago and New York should all lose 50 or more games, and only the Nets aren't motivated to lose — they... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — After 20 years in the NBA, Dirk Nowitzki can't be fooled.He knows when teams aren't giving an honest effort, when they are out there playing but not playing to win."It's pretty obvious," Nowitzki said.Easy to spot, the NBA is finding tanking not so easy to stop.It's a problem for the league office, which has fined owners, chastised teams and sent out league-wide memos on the topic. And with big brother watching, teams are abiding by the letter of the law, but arguably not the spirit of its intent.Tanking is viewed as a solution — sometimes the only one — for some teams and their fans, hoping something good can come from being bad if they cash in at the lottery and land a top draft pick.Nearly a third of the 30 NBA teams are brutally bad this season and it's hard to believe some aren't losing on purpose. Phoenix, Memphis, Atlanta, Orlando, Dallas, Sacramento, Brooklyn, Chicago and New York should all lose 50 or more games, and only the Nets aren't motivated to lose — they... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — The NBA fined outspoken Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $600,000 on Wednesday for comments about tanking during a podcast with Hall of Famer Julius Erving.Commissioner Adam Silver said the fine was for "public statements detrimental to the NBA." The league said the podcast with Erving was posted Sunday, the day the All-Star game was played in Los Angeles.Cuban said during the 30-minute interview that he met recently with some of his players and told them "losing is our best option." Cuban was trying to illustrate to Erving how he believes he is a transparent owner."I'm probably not supposed to say this, but I just had dinner with a bunch of our guys the other night," Cuban said. "And here we are. We weren't competing for the playoffs. I was like, 'Look, losing is our best option.'"Adam would hate to be hearing that. But at least I sat down and I explained it to them. And I explained what our plans are going to be this summer, that we're not going to tank again. This is like... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dirk Nowitzki said Wednesday night he was "disgusted" to read about allegations of inappropriate sexual conduct by former team president Terdema Ussery in a Sports Illustrated report that described a hostile workplace for women.The 20-year player who has spent his entire career with the Mavericks told reporters after the first post-All-Star break practice in Los Angeles that he was glad the franchise was addressing the situation by hiring outside counsel to investigate the allegations."It's very disappointing," Nowitzki told The Dallas Morning News. "It's heartbreaking. I'm glad it's all coming out. I was disgusted when I read the article, obviously, as everybody was. I was shocked ... that our franchise, my franchise, that stuff like that was going on."Ussery was accused of making sexually suggestive remarks to several women. He spent 18 years with the team before going to the sports apparel company Under Armour in 2015. Ussery, who was investigated by the team over... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — The NBA fined outspoken Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $600,000 on Wednesday for comments about tanking during a podcast with Hall of Famer Julius Erving.Commissioner Adam Silver said the fine was for "public statements detrimental to the NBA." The league said the podcast with Erving was posted Sunday, the day the All-Star game was played in Los Angeles.Cuban said during the 30-minute interview that he met recently with some of his players and told them "losing is our best option." Cuban was trying to illustrate to Erving how he believes he is a transparent owner."I'm probably not supposed to say this, but I just had dinner with a bunch of our guys the other night," Cuban said. "And here we are. We weren't competing for the playoffs. I was like, 'Look, losing is our best option.'"Adam would hate to be hearing that. But at least I sat down and I explained it to them. And I explained what our plans are going to be this summer, that we're not going to tank again. This is like... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — The NBA fined outspoken Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $600,000 on Wednesday for comments about tanking during a podcast with Hall of Famer Julius Erving.Commissioner Adam Silver said the fine was for "public statements detrimental to the NBA." The league said the podcast with Erving was posted Sunday, the day the All-Star game was played in Los Angeles.Cuban said during the 30-minute interview that he met recently with some of his players and told them "losing is our best option." Cuban was trying to illustrate to Erving how he believes he is a transparent owner."I'm probably not supposed to say this, but I just had dinner with a bunch of our guys the other night," Cuban said. "And here we are. We weren't competing for the playoffs. I was like, 'Look, losing is our best option.'"Adam would hate to be hearing that. But at least I sat down and I explained it to them. And I explained what our plans are going to be this summer, that we're not going to tank again. This is like... [More]

Golden State and Cleveland are used to looking down at the rest of the NBA, though it's Houston and Toronto enjoying that view at the All-Star break.The Rockets and Raptors are the conference leaders and will try to keep rolling when play resumes. Houston has won 10 straight to edge past the Warriors, and Toronto is two games up in the East after seven consecutive wins.So, are the Raptors the best team in the East?"I don't know. The record says we are, but for me to sit here and say we are the best team — we have confidence, but I'm not going to sit here and say we are the best team," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. "Right now, we're No. 1. The numbers say that."Houston coach Mike D'Antoni says the Rockets like being in the Warriors' spot, but don't talk about them — for now."Nobody's ready for that yet," he said. "So as we go forward we'll see what we got, but yeah, we would love to be the No. 1 team without a doubt."___While Commissioner Adam Silver discussed the idea of revamping the... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Emmanuel Mudiay is headed to the New York Knicks, with Denver adding guard Devin Harris from Dallas on Thursday in a three-team deadline trade that the Nuggets hope will give them needed experience for a playoff push.The rebuilding Mavericks will get Doug McDermott from the Knicks, who are fading from postseason contention and just lost All-Star forward Kristaps Porzingis to a season-ending knee injury.Mudiay was the No. 7 pick in the 2015 draft and former starter, but hasn't started a game this season and is averaging a career-worst 8.5 points in about 18 minutes per game.It was the second trade in as many days for the Knicks after Porzingis' injury. They sent Willy Hernangomez, voted to the All-Rookie first team last season, to Charlotte for two second-round picks and forward Johnny O'Bryant, who was waived.Harris was having another solid season in his second stint with the Mavericks, who traded up to get him with the fifth pick in the 2004 draft. He returned to Dallas in... [More]