NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A person familiar with the situation says the New Orleans Pelicans have acquired veteran center Derrick Favors from the Utah Jazz in exchange for a pair of second-round draft choices.The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Monday because the deal has not been announced.The Jazz dealt away 6-foot-10 Favors shortly after agreeing to contract terms with free agent center Bojan Bogdanovic, who played for Indiana last season.Favors, who'll be 28 next season, was the Nets' first round draft choice in 2010 and was traded during his rookie season to Utah. He brings career averages of 11.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks to New Orleans, where he'll join two other centers — veteran Jahlil Okafor and No. 8 overall draft pick Jaxson Hayes — on the roster. Christian Wood, a 6-10 forward signed by New Orleans late last season, also can play center.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Few teams could match the Utah Jazz in their ability to dominate on defense this season. An inability to generate consistent offense, however, ultimately doomed Utah in the postseason.After getting knocked out of the first-round of the postseason by the Houston Rockets, change is in the air for the Jazz as the team heads into the offseason. Utah plans to target shooters and playmakers in free agency who can take some of the defensive focus away from leading scorer Donovan Mitchell."We want to move the group forward," Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said at the team's practice facility Thursday. "While we have a very good team, the results told us that we don't have a great team."Utah does have a solid foundation in place thanks to continued progress from Mitchell and center Rudy Gobert. The duo helped lead the Jazz to a 50-win season and a third straight playoff berth.Mitchell overcame a sluggish start to his sophomore season and showed his stellar rookie campaign was no fluke.... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic's one-game suspension for leaving the bench during an altercation took Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone by surprise."I felt — we felt — pretty strongly that he would not be suspended based on other instances, similar instances. But they saw it in a different light," Malone said prior to the Nuggets' game Friday night against the Phoenix Suns, who were missing their own center, DeAndre Ayton, with a sprained ankle.One of those similar situations Malone surely had in mind was NBA superstar Stephen Curry's avoidance of a suspension after leaving the bench in a strikingly similar manner to Jokic in Golden State's final preseason game a few months ago.On that night, the Lakers' Lance Stephenson was fouled by Quinn Cook and threw a quick punch. Curry rose from his seat on the baseline and took several steps onto the court. Curry wasn't suspended for the Warriors' next game, which was their season opener against Oklahoma City when the Warriors received their championship... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic received a one-game suspension for leaving the bench during an altercation.Jokic will miss the contest Friday night against the Phoenix Suns, the league announced.The Serbian center stepped toward the court during Wednesday's loss at Utah when teammate Mason Plumlee and Derrick Favors of the Jazz engaged in an altercation near the basket. The league ruled that Jokic's "proximity to the altercation and aggressive manner created the potential for further escalation of the situation."Jokic leads the Nuggets in points (19.8), rebounds (10.3) and assists (7.7) this season.Plumlee received a $25,000 fine for the incident that occurred late in the first quarter and Favors was fined $15,000.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CLEVELAND (AP) — Kyle Korver is getting another shot with a contender.The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to trade Korver, one of the best deep outside shooters in NBA history, to the Utah Jazz, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday.In exchange for Korver, the Cavs will get guard Alec Burks — and his expiring contract — along with two future second-round draft picks, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the swap has to be approved by the NBA. The trade might not become official until Thursday.For Korver, Cleveland will get Utah's 2020 second-round selection along with Washington's 2021 second-rounder. The Cavs also receive an asset in Burks' expiring contract worth $11.2 million, something they might be able to use in another deal."I was surprised," Jazz star Donovan Mitchell said of the deal that was agreed to shortly before Utah's 101-91 victory in Brooklyn. "AB is my guy. He is really a funny dude. He is always keeping a... [More]

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah didn't make any major offseason moves but fans shouldn't mistake that for a sign the Jazz are satisfied with the status quo.With the start of training camp, Utah players and coaches are echoing the same message: Continuity doesn't equal complacency.The Jazz are focused on maximizing potential they showed toward the end of last season — with a roster that has returned mostly intact — once the regular season starts in mid-October."I don't want to pick up where we left off," coach Quin Snyder told reporters at the team's media day Monday. "That implies it's the same group beginning to do something. This is a new journey. We can take with us the experience. We can take with us the chemistry and the things we learned. But this is a new team."Nothing encapsulates that attitude better than the work various Jazz players have put in while preparing for the season.Derrick Favors and Jae Crowder dropped weight over the summer to improve their mobility and quickness in operating... [More]

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — No roster makeover for the Utah Jazz.Rather than spend time and money trying to make a splash by bringing in a high-profile free agent, the Jazz are banking on continued internal development and continuity to boost a team that finished the 2017-18 season on a tear.That approach is reflected in the team's decision to bring back free agents Derrick Favors, Dante Exum, and Raul Neto under new multi-year contracts."Chemistry is a hard thing," Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said at a press conference on Friday announcing the three free-agent signings. "It's a hard thing to predict. You can get five great people in the room and have it just not click for whatever reason, so we didn't want to overthink that."Terms of the contracts were not disclosed.Keeping Utah's roster virtually intact going into the 2018-19 season appears to be a sound move given how the Jazz finished this past NBA season. Utah earned the fifth seed in the West with a 48-34 record, going 29-6 over their final... [More]

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Upon hearing that power forward Derrick Favors was returning to Utah, his Jazz teammates Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert reacted by quickly making similar requests.They want him to buy dinner.Favors surely can do that now.With the NBA still processing the ramifications of LeBron James going to the Los Angeles Lakers and more than $1 billion in new deals getting struck on the first full day of free agency, deals continued Monday — and Favors was one of the day's big winners. He agreed to a two-year, $36 million deal to return to the Jazz, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press."Let's get it!!!" Favors wrote on Twitter, not long after news of the deal broke.The Jazz went to Atlanta over the weekend to sit down with Favors, and Utah general manager Dennis Lindsey had said going into the negotiating period that the team felt good about retaining all three of their free agents — Favors, Dante Exum and Raul Neto.The biggest domino in that trio... [More]

An NBA free-agent class with a little something for everyone hits the market on July 1. The group includes an array of superstars, big men, glue guys and sharp-shooters.Here's a look at some of the players to follow when the action begins:THE SUPERSTARS— Kevin Durant (player option): Has expressed his desire to remain with the Warriors. He's in the middle of his prime as one of the game's premier players.— Paul George (player option): He has one of the best all-around games in the league and is still fairly young at 28.— LeBron James (player option): Still the free-agent grand prize at age 33, James has shown few signs of wear and tear despite 15 stellar seasons in the league.— Chris Paul (unrestricted): Among the league's best point guards even at 33, but he's struggled some with injuries over the years, including a hamstring issue in last year's playoffs.BIG MEN— Clint Capela (restricted): He's emerged as one of the league's top young big men after averaging 13.9 points, 10.8 rebounds... [More]

An NBA free-agent class with a little something for everyone hits the market on July 1. The group includes an array of superstars, big men, glue guys and sharp-shooters.Here's a look at some of the players to follow when the action begins:THE SUPERSTARS— Kevin Durant (player option): Has expressed his desire to remain with the Warriors. He's in the middle of his prime as one of the game's premier players.— Paul George (player option): He has one of the best all-around games in the league and is still fairly young at 28.— LeBron James (player option): Still the free-agent grand prize at age 33, James has shown few signs of wear and tear despite 15 stellar seasons in the league.— Chris Paul (unrestricted): Among the league's best point guards even at 33, but he's struggled some with injuries over the years, including a hamstring issue in last year's playoffs.BIG MEN— Clint Capela (restricted): He's emerged as one of the league's top young big men after averaging 13.9 points, 10.8 rebounds... [More]

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Restless nights became common for Donovan Mitchell during his rookie season.Mitchell worried about being able to make the playoffs and he worried about whether he was doing enough of the right things to get the Utah Jazz there."There would be nights where I just couldn't fall asleep," Mitchell said. "I'd just be in bed and couldn't sleep because I was thinking about it. This is crazy how all this has come together to be honest."Crazy sums up how the season played out for Mitchell and the Jazz.Few NBA teams have ever experienced as dramatic an in-season turnaround as Utah. The Jazz fell to 19-28 in mid-January and seemed headed for a lottery pick rather than a playoff spot. Things changed dramatically once Rudy Gobert came back from a knee injury and Mitchell emerged as the team's top playmaker on offense.The Jazz won 29 of their final 35 regular-season games to claim a playoff spot. They beat Oklahoma City in six games to reach the Western Conference semifinals, where... [More]

LeBron James saved a game. Russell Westbrook and Paul George saved a season.And now, Game 6 awaits them all.A trio of possible series-ending games are on Friday night's NBA playoff schedule: Cleveland at Indiana, Toronto at Washington and Oklahoma City at Utah. For the Cavaliers and Raptors, the scenario is they advance with a road win or head back home for Game 7 on Sunday. The Thunder don't have such a safety net; they must win in Salt Lake City, or it'll be the Jazz going to the second round.James went from goaltending to game-winning in a matter of seconds in Game 5 on Wednesday night, his straightaway 3-pointer at the buzzer giving Cleveland a three-point win and a 3-2 series lead. Westbrook and George looked well on their way to summer vacation in their Game 5 matchup with the Jazz , before they combined for 54 points in a 61-28 Oklahoma City run that rallied the Thunder from a 25-point second-half deficit.The stars carried the Cavs and Thunder.The Raptors, they have a 3-2 lead thanks... [More]

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — When Derrick Favors can find ways to impose his will, good things happen for the Utah Jazz.Favors has been quietly, albeit effectively, getting it done against the Oklahoma City Thunder, playing in the shadows of Utah rookie of the year candidate Donovan Mitchell and Jazz center Rudy Gobert.But a healthy Favors is making an impact.The Jazz have returned to Utah with the series tied 1-1, thanks in no small part to Favors. He tallied career playoff highs of 20 points and 16 rebounds in Utah's 102-95 road win on Wednesday.Jazz coach Quin Snyder will start Favors at power forward alongside Gobert beginning with Game 3 on Saturday. But he will also utilize him as a backup center to spell Gobert. Favors has done his part to make playing alongside Gobert work by extending his shooting range to improve offensive spacing. He has also made himself an effective roller."He's always been a good pick-and-roll player, regardless of 'position,'" Snyder said. "We've never really thought... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The first taste of the NBA playoffs for Timberwolves All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns has been rather bitter, thanks to the 3-point-happy Houston Rockets.The two-game totals tell a frustrating story for the 22-year-old: just 13 points, 5 for 18 shooting and a 2-0 deficit in the series against the Rockets. Towns has found himself the subject of pointed criticism from analysts, fans and even his own team.The switch-heavy Rockets have double-teamed Towns to a stifling effect, and the Timberwolves sure haven't helped their 7-footer out by getting him the ball in favorable situations in the post."They're coming to double. He knows that. He has to face up, be strong with the ball, make quick moves," point guard Jeff Teague said. "But we have to figure out how to get him running, get him some easy buckets."The team's struggles have taken a little luster off Minnesota's first postseason home game in 14 years, but the fans who remember the Timberwolves reaching the Western Conference... [More]

F Derrick Favors and rookie Donovan Mitchell added 17 points apiece for Utah, which was swept 4-0 by Golden State in the Western Conference semifinals last May.Favors completed a double-double with a team-best 10 rebounds.

F Derrick Favors led Utah with 20 points.

CLEVELAND -- LeBron James scored 34 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers outlasted the Chicago Bulls 115-112 on Thursday night.Kevin Love added 27 points and seven rebounds for Cleveland, which doesn't play again until their NBA Finals rematch with Golden State on Christmas. They've won 19 of 21 games and have scored at least 100 points in 26 straight.Chicago, led by Lauri Markkanen's 25 points, had a seven-game win streak halted. There were 24 lead changes by the end of the third quarter and 26 in the game. James scored 11 in the fourth quarter, and his two free throws with 11.1 seconds left put the Cavaliers ahead by three.Raptors 114, 76ers 109PHILADELPHIA -- DeMar DeRozan scored a career-high 45 points, including five in a pivotal 10-2 flurry late in the game, as Toronto rallied for a victory over short-handed Philadelphia.DeRozan was 6 of 9 on 3-point attempts. His six triples were a career high.Kyle Lowry added 23 points for the Raptors, who erased a 22-point third-quarter deficit to... [More]

F Derrick Favors had 14 points and nine rebounds in Thursday's 100-89 victory over San Antonio.

F Derrick Favors remains in concussion protocol after suffering a left eye laceration last Friday in Boston.

F Derrick Favors became the second Utah Jazz player to leave Friday night's game against the Boston Celtics in the first half, joining teammate Rudy Gobert in the locker room. Favors, who had six points and three rebounds, took an apparent blow just above his left eye with 4:06 left in the second quarter while committing a foul on Jaylen Brown. Favors is averaging 12.3 points and 6.7 rebounds this season.