ATLANTA (AP) — Just like that, the Atlanta Hawks transformed themselves into a playoff contender. A team that averaged less than 25 wins the last three seasons added to its impressive young core with a whirlwind of free-agent signings, capped by the news late Tuesday that Sacramento would not match a four-year, $72 million offer sheet to Bogdan Bogdanovic. “It's go time,” tweeted Hawks All-Star guard Trae Young, clearly excited by the bulked-up supporting case he'll have around him in 2021. “Let's work!!!” Bogdanovic tweeted back. Flush with cash heading into free agency after beginning a major overhaul three years ago, the Hawks quickly signed forward Danilo Gallinari (three years, $61.5 million) and guards Rajon Rondo (two years, $15 million) and Kris Dunn (two years, $10 million). Then, after a proposed sign-and-trade that would have sent Bogdanovic to the Milwaukee Bucks fell through, Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk pounced at the opportunity to grab the 28-year-old Serbian guard... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers have signed veteran Spanish center Marc Gasol. The NBA champions confirmed the latest step in their roster reconfiguration Tuesday by announcing the addition of the 35-year-old Gasol, who spent the last 1 1/2 seasons with the Toronto Raptors and won a championship ring in 2019. The Lakers traded starting center JaVale McGee to Cleveland to make room under the salary cap to sign Gasol, who will be expected to provide his usual sturdy defense along with strong passing skills and 3-point shooting. Gasol struggled with injuries last season while scoring a career-low 7.5 points per game along with 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists. The Lakers still beat out several interested suitors for Gasol, whose NBA career is coming full circle as he joins the team that drafted him in 2007. Gasol will suit up for the Lakers nearly 13 years after the franchise acquired his older brother, Pau, by trading Marc's draft rights to the Memphis Grizzlies in February 2008 while... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers have signed veteran Spanish center Marc Gasol. The NBA champions confirmed the latest step in their roster reconfiguration Tuesday by announcing the addition of the 35-year-old Gasol, who spent the last 1 1/2 seasons with the Toronto Raptors and won a championship ring in 2019. The Lakers traded starting center JaVale McGee to Cleveland to make room under the salary cap to sign Gasol, who will be expected to provide his usual sturdy defense along with strong passing skills and 3-point shooting. Gasol struggled with injuries last season while scoring a career-low 7.5 points per game along with 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists. The Lakers still beat out several interested suitors for Gasol, whose NBA career is coming full circle as he joins the team that drafted him in 2007. Gasol will suit up for the Lakers nearly 13 years after the franchise acquired his older brother, Pau, by trading Marc's draft rights to the Memphis Grizzlies in February 2008 while... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — LeBron James now has been part of more postseason game victories than any player in NBA history, a record he’s earned over his 14 appearances in the playoffs.Earlier in this postseason, he also became the all-time leader in playoff road wins. That one seems a little fraudulent, in the sense that this year counts toward that total.The NBA has tried to dress the neutral courts up with the comforts of home since the season restarted at Walt Disney World in July; the home team gets its usual music, gets its graphics splayed everywhere, even has the traditional over-the-top introduction of the starting lineup.It’s all nice, but none of it really matters.For the first time in NBA history, “road” teams have a winning record through the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Milwaukee Bucks lost twice as many “home” games in the bubble than they did in their home building; they were 4-6 carrying that designation at Disney, 28-3 at Fiserv Forum.“Yeah, the home-road stuff... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — LeBron James now has been part of more postseason game victories than any player in NBA history, a record he’s earned over his 14 appearances in the playoffs.Earlier in this postseason, he also became the all-time leader in playoff road wins. That one seems a little fraudulent, in the sense that this year counts toward that total.The NBA has tried to dress the neutral courts up with the comforts of home since the season restarted at Walt Disney World in July; the home team gets its usual music, gets its graphics splayed everywhere, even has the traditional over-the-top introduction of the starting lineup.It’s all nice, but none of it really matters.For the first time in NBA history, “road” teams have a winning record through the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Milwaukee Bucks lost twice as many “home” games in the bubble than they did in their home building; they were 4-6 carrying that designation at Disney, 28-3 at Fiserv Forum.“Yeah, the home-road stuff... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — The Milwaukee Bucks will play another day.They’re waiting to see if reigning NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo will join them.It’s still a dire situation for the team that had the league's best regular-season record this season — they’re down 3-1 in the Eastern Conference semifinals to the Miami Heat, with another win-or-go-home test awaiting in Game 5 on Tuesday night. And they don’t know if Antetokounmpo, who sprained his right ankle in Game 3 and then again in Game 4, will be ready.“There’s hope,” Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “We’re not ruling him out, so I guess until he’s ruled out you have hope. He’s going to do everything he can to make himself available.”Also Tuesday: Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals, with that matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets tied at a game apiece.Antetokounmpo was with the Bucks for their light practice Monday. He got treatment on the ankle, then left wearing a protective boot over his right... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers planned to get together Wednesday night to watch basketball, which is about all they've been able to do lately.Soon enough, they'll get to play it again.For now, their competition comes from video games. Their superstar player is also adept at those, as coach Frank Vogel revealed when asked what he's learned about LeBron James that surprised him most.“I would say how good he is at Madden football,” Vogel said. “I think they’ve been playing a lot of Madden football, our group has, and I hear he’s very good.” James won't be able to show his skills on the basketball court again until Friday, when the Lakers conclude a lengthy layoff in the bubble. The No. 1 seed in the Western Conference has been waiting for its second-round opponent. Houston and Oklahoma City were playing their Game 7 on Wednesday, with the Lakers set to watch it during a team dinner.Starting Thursday, the Lakers can start working on a game plan for either James Harden,... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — In a crammed schedule after the NBA's restart, rest has been hard to find.Teams played eight games in two weeks after play resumed on July 30, then jumped into the postseason. Midway through the first round, fatigue might start to show.That's why wrapping up series quickly, almost always a good thing, might be even more important this year. Miami has its chance. The Lakers and Bucks look like they still might.And Houston might regret if it let its opportunity get away.After wasting a late lead and dropping Game 3 in overtime, the Rockets look to regain control of their series against Oklahoma City when the teams meet Monday.“Playoffs, you've got some adversity somewhere and this is adversity,” Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni said. “Now we've got to come out, make another statement, so that's what we're going to do.”Houston had a five-point lead with under a minute remaining in regulation Saturday, before the Thunder rallied for a 119-107 victory in overtime that... [More]

The Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks have restored some sense of normalcy to these anything-but-normal NBA playoffs.The top-seeded teams in the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively, lost their openers and are now looking to take control of their series. The Lakers could pull ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday and the Bucks could take the lead on the pesky Orlando Magic.Lakers forward LeBron James has been around too long to get too worked up about one loss. He was confident the Lakers would recover from their Game 1 setback, and they looked much like their pre-pandemic selves in beating the Trail Blazers 111-88 on Thursday. “I know what we’re capable of,” he said. “I know how we’re built. I don’t compare us to anyone. I compare us to us.”The Lakers were fully aware of the challenge they would face against from the talented Blazers entering the series, led by All-Star guard Damian Lillard.“This team was in the conference finals last year,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — The Lakers and Bucks exited practice Wednesday to palm trees around them and sunny skies overhead.The weather is good at Walt Disney World. The service is great. The setting seems ideal.For the best NBA teams, it's anything but.The top-four seeds in each conference should be playing in their arenas right now, with home-court advantage in the first two games of their playoff series. They'd have their fans screaming during the action and in many cases families waiting at home afterward.Boy, do some of them miss that at the moment.“If's definitely a difference. You can feel it,” Bucks All-Star Khris Middleton said. "There's times where we really depended on our crowd last year and during the season this year to kind of pull us out of our struggle or whatever it was. And here, there is none of that."We have to bring it every single night. We can't rely on our crowd, our fans to give us that energy. We have to bring it ourselves."Milwaukee and Los Angeles, the No.... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rajon Rondo broke his right thumb in practice with the Los Angeles Lakers in Florida.The veteran point guard will be out for six to eight weeks, the Lakers said Sunday night. Rondo will have surgery this week.Rondo has been a key backup during his second season with the Lakers, who signed him shortly after adding LeBron James to the roster in July 2018. James typically functions as the Lakers' point guard with the starting unit, but Rondo frequently took on the role while James rested or while both veterans were on the floor together.Rondo is averaging 7.1 points, 5.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds in 48 appearances this season, including three starts. He has been a regular presence on the floor late in close games, with coach Frank Vogel trusting his veteran leadership and playmaking.Rondo is seeking his second NBA championship after winning with Boston in 2008, but he has a lengthy history of hand injuries.He broke his right thumb during the playoffs with the Chicago Bulls... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks center Dwight Powell underwent surgery to repair a torn right Achilles tendon, an injury that ended his season.The team said Monday the surgery was performed by Dr. Bob Anderson in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The 28-year-old Powell could be ready for training camp in early October, although the timetable could be more in line with the start of the regular season.Powell went down with a non-contact injury with 2:57 left in the first quarter in a 110-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 21. Three days after the injury, the Mavericks acquired center Willie Cauley-Stein in a trade with Sacramento. The Kings got a second-round pick in this year's draft.In six NBA seasons, Powell has averaged nearly 10 points and six rebounds per game. Powell has played all but five of his 371 career games for the Mavericks since coming over from Boston in the Rajon Rondo trade in December 2015. Rondo didn't stay with Dallas beyond that season.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks center Dwight Powell underwent surgery to repair a torn right Achilles tendon, an injury that ended his season.The team said Monday the surgery was performed by Dr. Bob Anderson in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The 28-year-old Powell could be ready for training camp in early October, although the timetable could be more in line with the start of the regular season.Powell went down with a non-contact injury with 2:57 left in the first quarter in a 110-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 21. Three days after the injury, the Mavericks acquired center Willie Cauley-Stein in a trade with Sacramento. The Kings got rookie Isaiah Roby.In six NBA seasons, Powell has averaged nearly 10 points and six rebounds per game. Powell has played all but five of his 371 career games for the Mavericks since coming over from Boston in the Rajon Rondo trade in December 2015. Rondo didn't stay with Dallas beyond that season.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks completed a trade Saturday to acquire 7-foot center Willie Cauley-Stein from Golden State for a second-round draft pick this year.The Mavericks needed help on their front line after starting center Dwight Powell tore his right Achilles tendon, ending his season.The Warriors will get Utah's second-round pick. Dallas acquired that selection in a draft-day trade with Detroit last year. To make room for Cauley-Stein, the Mavericks waived Justin Patton, who was acquired in a trade with Oklahoma City on Friday, the same day Dallas agreed to the deal with Golden State.Cauley-Stein missed all of training camp and the exhibition games because of a left foot injury. He is averaging 7.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and a team-leading 1.22 blocks in 41 games with 37 starts for the Warriors. He has scored in double figures 17 times.The No. 6 pick in the 2015 draft, Cauley-Stein averaged 10.1 points and 6.4 rebounds with the Sacramento Kings during the 2018-19... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks didn’t take long to settle on a plan to fill a big void created by a season-ending injury to center Dwight Powell.The Mavericks are set to acquire Willie Cauley-Stein from the Golden State Warriors for a second-round pick in this year’s draft, three people with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press.Two of the people said Dallas intends to make room for Cauley-Stein on the roster by waiving Justin Patton, acquired in a separate trade with Oklahoma City. The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the Cauley-Stein deal can’t be finalized until Patton is waived.The Mavericks made the moves three days after Powell, their starting center, tore his right Achilles tendon against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Thunder sent cash along with Patton to Dallas for rookie Isaiah Roby. The 7-foot Cauley-Stein, who missed all of training camp and the exhibition games because of a left foot injury, is averaging 7.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks forward Dwight Powell will miss the rest of the season with a torn right Achilles tendon, a blow to a team contending for a playoff spot for the first time in four years.The club confirmed Wednesday the diagnosis it had feared after Powell was injured in the first quarter of a 110-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. Powell is exploring his options on surgery.The 28-year-old Powell went down with a non-contact injury with 2:57 left in the first quarter Tuesday night. He was helped to the locker room while putting no weight on his right leg. The injury came on the same night 7-foot-3 forward Kristaps Porzingis returned after missing 10 games because of a sore right knee. Powell averaged 13 points on 71% shooting in the games Porzingis missed and was proving to be an effective sidekick. They usually started together when healthy.Powell, in his sixth season in the NBA, has averaged nearly 10 points and six rebounds a game in 39 previous games. He had increased... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas center Dwight Powell sustained what the Mavericks fear is a “severe” injury to his right Achilles tendon in a 110-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night.Coach Rick Carlisle said the club would wait on an MRI exam to determine the extent of the injury, but said the injury was “feared to be severe.”Powell went down with a non-contact injury with 2:57 left in the first quarter. He was helped to the locker room while putting no weight on his right leg. Teammate J.J. Barea — who tore his right Achilles tendon last season — was distraught as Powell was taken off the court.“It doesn’t get much tougher than this, if it ends up being what we fear it might,” Carlisle said. “But he will be back, regardless. There’s just some guys you just know, they have a level of resourcefulness, a level of fight in them. Barea’s one of them. Powell’s another. He’ll be back.” Teammate Luka Doncic summed up a somber Mavericks' locker room in talking about Powell's presence on the... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas center Dwight Powell sustained what the Mavericks fear is a “severe” injury to his right Achilles tendon in a 110-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night.Coach Rick Carlisle said the club would wait on an MRI exam to determine the extent of the injury, but said the injury was “feared to be severe.”Powell went down with a non-contact injury with 2:57 left in the first quarter. He was helped to the locker room while putting no weight on his right leg. Teammate J.J. Barea — who tore his right Achilles tendon last season — was distraught as Powell was taken off the court.“It doesn’t get much tougher than this, if it ends up being what we fear it might,” Carlisle said. “But he will be back, regardless. There’s just some guys you just know, they have a level of resourcefulness, a level of fight in them. Barea’s one of them. Powell’s another. He’ll be back.” The injury came on the same night 7-foot-3 forward Kristaps Porzingis returned after missing 10 games... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks lost starting center Dwight Powell to a right Achilles tendon injury in the first quarter of their game Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Clippers.Powell went down with a non-contact injury with 2:57 left in the first quarter. He was helped to the locker room putting no weight on his right leg. The team later announced Powell had an Achilles tendon injury and he was out for the game.Powell’s teammate J.J. Barea – who tore his right Achilles tendon last season – was distraught as Powell was taken off the court.Powell, in his sixth season in the NBA, has averaged nearly 10 points and six rebounds a game in 39 previous games. He had increased his scoring average over each of his first five seasons. Powell has played all but five of his 371 career games for the Mavericks, arriving from Boston in a five-player trade in December 2014 that also brought point guard Rajon Rondo. Rondo’s style clashed with coach Rick Carlisle, but Powell’s energy and productivity in the paint has made him a Carlisle favorite.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — LeBron James and Anthony Davis missed the Lakers' game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday.Lakers coach Frank Vogel said James has a chest cold. Officially, the team said he has flu-like symptoms. James is averaging 25.4 points, a league-leading 10.7 assists and 8.7 rebounds and has helped the Lakers to the best record in the Western Conference. He played on Friday night and had 35 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists in a win over the Dallas Mavericks. Vogel said the performance was especially impressive because James struggled with breathing throughout.Davis, who leads the Lakers with 27.1 points per game, missed his second straight game with a gluteus maximus contusion. Danny Green also sat out with a sore right hip. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Rajon Rondo moved into the starting lineup and Kyle Kuzma got his third start of the season.The short-handed Lakers faced a Thunder team that has won 11 of 13 games and rolled past the Houston Rockets on Thursday night.