DENVER (AP) — In response to an early call, Toronto coach Nick Nurse formed the perfect "O'' with his mouth and held it for a dozen or so seconds.Oh, these playoffs. They can leave your mouth agape — just like Nurse's gone-viral expression on the bench during a win Sunday in Orlando.Now leading 3-1, Nurse and the Raptors look to close out their series with the Magic at home Tuesday. The same goes for Philadelphia against Brooklyn and Portland against Oklahoma City.The second-seeded Denver Nuggets return home Tuesday following their first victory in San Antonio since 2012. Tied at 2, they've reclaimed home-court advantage as Nuggets coach Michael Malone finds himself in quite a chess match with his counterpart Gregg Popovich."He's Bobby Fischer," Malone said, in comparing Popovich to the chess prodigy. "He's a savant. So I'm not worried about matching wits with Gregg Popovich. I'm worried about helping our team."Face it, this was comical: The look of Nurse, who instantly became a meme with... [More]

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The stars have been stars in these playoffs.Kyrie Irving has Boston on the cusp of sweeping away Indiana Pacers. Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Golden State are coming off a game against the Los Angeles Clippers where the Warriors looked very much like the NBA champions again. Damian Lillard and Russell Westbrook are going at each other big-time in the Portland-Oklahoma City series.And then there's Pascal Siakam.Toronto's surprise story is no surprise anymore.Siakam has been perhaps the biggest breakout player in these playoffs, adding to his breakout season for the Raptors — who lead the Orlando Magic 2-1 in their first-round matchup thanks largely to the 25-year-old from Cameroon and his 24.3 points and 10 rebounds per game in the series.It's easy to forget that Siakam only started playing organized basketball seven years ago."Seriously?" Raptors guard Danny Green asked, unaware of his teammate's unique background.Seriously.Raptors coach Nick Nurse was amused by... [More]

Orlando returned to Florida with home-court advantage.Indiana and Oklahoma City are seeking some home-court magic.A trio of Game 3s in the NBA on Friday night — Toronto at Orlando, Boston at Indiana and Portland at Oklahoma City — have three very different story lines. The Magic got a split of their first two games with the Raptors, the Pacers are reeling after a late-game collapse in Game 2 left them trailing the Celtics 2-0, and the Thunder have seemed completely out of sorts as they've gotten into a 2-0 hole against the Trail Blazers."I still don't think we understand how good a team we can be when we play well," Magic coach Steve Clifford said.Indiana had a great chance at getting a split slip away late in Game 2 at Boston. The Pacers have now lost 16 of their last 24 games overall, are looking at a fourth consecutive first-round ouster and have never won a series after losing the first two games.Having said all that, the Celtics are leery of a letup."We know anything can happen in... [More]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — When Paul George has been rolling this season, so has Oklahoma City.The Thunder's All-Star forward has been off his game against Portland, and OKC has struggled against the Trail Blazers. Yes, George is averaging 26.5 points in their first-round playoff series, but he's making just 27 percent of his 3-pointers — down from 39 percent during the regular season.Much has been made of his shoulder issues, which he has been dealing with the past few months. George even missed the regular-season finale against Milwaukee after not being able to lift his arm.But George said Thursday his shoulder is not the issue, noting that he is pain-free."The first game it was just out of rhythm, trying to find shots," George said. "The second game, it was just knowing where shots were going to come from, knowing the space that I could get playing at the basket and taking advantage of where I can get to the rim. It'll be a great mix Game 3."The Thunder hope it is a great mix. They're down... [More]

Orlando returned to Florida with home-court advantage.Indiana and Oklahoma City are seeking some home-court magic.A trio of Game 3s in the NBA on Friday night — Toronto at Orlando, Boston at Indiana and Portland at Oklahoma City — have three very different story lines. The Magic got a split of their first two games with the Raptors, the Pacers are reeling after a late-game collapse in Game 2 left them trailing the Celtics 2-0, and the Thunder have seemed completely out of sorts as they've gotten into a 2-0 hole against the Trail Blazers."I still don't think we understand how good a team we can be when we play well," Magic coach Steve Clifford said.Indiana had a great chance at getting a split slip away late in Game 2 at Boston. The Pacers have now lost 16 of their last 24 games overall, are looking at a fourth consecutive first-round ouster and have never won a series after losing the first two games.Having said all that, the Celtics are leery of a letup."We know anything can happen in... [More]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Damian Lillard stared intently well after his deep, buzzer-beating 3-pointer fell to close out Portland's third quarter against the Thunder. The look on his face was one of determination, focus and yes, even a little bravado.It was as if Lillard was making a statement. It's not new for the Portland guard.Lillard, the Thunder's Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley all play with an edge and have provided some of the most entertaining moments of the postseason so far.With Lillard and Westbrook squaring off in the Portland-Oklahoma City series, they almost feed off each other's energy. Lillard finished with 29 points — including the stone-cold 3 — on Tuesday night and the Trail Blazers took a 2-0 lead against the Thunder with a 114-94 victory. The series shifts to Oklahoma City on Friday.Lillard has been dialed in from the start of the series against the Thunder, in part because the Trail Blazers were embarrassed in last year's playoffs by New Orleans. Portland got ousted... [More]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Damian Lillard stared intently well after his deep, buzzer-beating 3-pointer fell to close out Portland's third quarter against the Thunder. The look on his face was one of determination, focus and yes, even a little bravado.It was as if Lillard was making a statement. It's not new for the Portland guard.Lillard, the Thunder's Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley all play with an edge and have provided some of the most entertaining moments of the postseason so far.With Lillard and Westbrook squaring off in the Portland-Oklahoma City, they almost feed off each other's energy. Lillard finished with 29 points — including the stone-cold 3 — on Tuesday night and the Trail Blazers took a 2-0 lead against the Thunder with a 114-94 victory. The series shifts to Oklahoma City on Friday.Lillard has been dialed in from the start of the series against the Thunder, in part because the Trail Blazers were embarrassed in last year's playoffs by New Orleans. Portland got ousted in... [More]

Orlando had to fight until the final days of the regular season to get its postseason berth. Portland had to scramble down the stretch to replace a huge part of its success.And as is usually the case, San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich had his team playing its best basketball at the end.The Magic, Trail Blazers and Spurs were playoff ready. That's why they're all taking 1-0 series leads into their respective Game 2s on Tuesday night — with Orlando at Toronto, San Antonio at Denver and Portland playing host to Oklahoma City.Orlando and San Antonio, both No. 7 seeds, won on the road and grabbed home-court advantage. But they both know what's coming when Denver and Toronto get fueled by desperation on Tuesday night."It's going to be a lot tougher," Spurs guard DeMar DeRozan said."We're going to get their best," Magic coach Steve Clifford said.It goes without saying that all the teams that are down 1-0 found ways to get better for Game 2. The same goes for the teams leading those series. Clifford... [More]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Looking back on it now, the Trail Blazers were clearly smart to pick up Enes Kanter after he was waived by the New York Knicks.Kanter was brought aboard by Portland as insurance for the final stretch of the season, meant to back up starter Jusuf Nurkic.Then Nurkic broke his leg and Kanter was thrust into a starting role with his new team. After Portland's playoff-opening victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, Damian Lillard dubbed the 6-foot-11 center the Blazers' MVP."He had a huge presence down the stretch and played a huge part in us winning this game," Lillard said after Portland's 104-99 victory Sunday.Kanter finished with 20 points and a career playoff-high 18 rebounds, and was effective on defense against the likes of Russell Westbrook and Paul George.It's been quite a journey from New York castoff to Portland playoff hero for the seven-year NBA veteran.Kanter, 26, was waived by the Knicks following the trade deadline. Once a starter, he fell out of the rotation... [More]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — For the second straight season the Portland Trail Blazers earned the third seed in the West and home-court for the playoffs. This year they're looking for a better outcome than last year when they were surprisingly swept in the opening round by New Orleans.It won't be easy.The Trail Blazers take on Oklahoma City, a team that swept Portland in their four regular-season meetings."Being a top three team in the West is quite an accomplishment. It shows that our work has paid off — especially after last season to be able to bounce back and do it again — to me that's proving it up," Damian Lillard said. "That's showing a certain amount of grit and desire to get back to this point."We should be proud of ourselves, but obviously our business is just beginning."Portland locked the No. 3 seed with a wild 136-131 win over the Sacramento Kings in the regular-season finale on Wednesday night. Rookie Anfernee Simons, just 19, had 37 points in his first career start and the Blazers... [More]

Jusuf Nurkic's season-ending and gruesome leg injury, especially at this time of year, will strike fear into everyone in the NBA.In this age of "load management" being a fancy term for "night off" and even as the NBA frowns upon resting players anyway, the question will be asked: Should teams sit their stars down the stretch to protect them from something bad happening before the playoffs?Answers may vary, but the reality is that most teams in this season's playoff chase might not have the luxury of finding out.Golden State has gotten players some rest of late, been blown out in those games and hasn't seemed to mind too much. This is the edge the Warriors have; they are the only team in the NBA right now that absolutely knows it is good enough to win a championship. Milwaukee will likely get some guys some rest when it clinches the No. 1 seed, but losing Malcolm Brogdon for a few weeks already is a reminder that health is everything."You're going to have things that happen," Milwaukee coach... [More]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Damian Lillard is just going to assume that Portland won't have backcourt teammate CJ McCollum through the rest of the regular season so that the Trail Blazers can respond to his absence effectively.McCollum, who is averaging more than 21 points a game for Portland, has a strained left knee. He'll be re-evaluated next week, but at this point there's no timetable for his return.The injury comes at an inopportune time for the Blazers, who sit in fourth in the tight Western Conference standings with 12 games left to secure home-court advantage."Mentally, I don't want him to have to rush it," Lillard said about McCollum's return. "When he does come back I want him to be himself and be healthy, so in my mind, we're going to finish the regular season without him, maybe the last couple of games of the regular season. I think that's how I should think of it, knowing that we have to have a great effort for these last 12 games, planning on not having him out there."While the... [More]

LeBron James finally has Anthony Davis as a teammate.For one game.His Los Angeles Lakers were unable to swing a deal for Davis, but James drafted the New Orleans Pelicans star on Thursday when he and fellow captain Giannis Antetokounmpo sat down to choose their teams for the Feb. 17 All-Star Game in Charlotte.Davis told the Pelicans he wanted a trade, and James has made it clear that he'd love to play with him. But the Pelicans kept Davis as the trade deadline passed, so for now, their time as teammates will be limited to All-Star weekend and James pounced at the chance to grab him with the second pick of the reserve round."I'm very sure of that," James said, when asked by TNT host Ernie Johnson if he was sure he wanted Davis as a teammate."Isn't that tampering?" Antetokounmpo asked.Responded James, as both players laughed: "Tampering rules do not apply on All-Star weekend," a thinly veiled reference to the reaction James got when he listed Davis as one of many players he would like the... [More]

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Devin Booker is ready to take on the Curry brothers.The Phoenix Suns guard will look to defend his NBA All-Star 3-point championship from a year ago against brothers Stephen and Seth Curry on Feb. 16 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Stephen Curry, who plays for the Golden State Warriors, won the event in 2015 while brother Seth, who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers, is competing in his first 3-point contest.Charlotte's Kemba Walker, Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, Portland's Damian Lillard, Milwaukee's Khris Middleton, Toronto's Danny Green, Brooklyn's Joe Harris and Sacramento's Buddy Hield round out the 10-player field.The 3-point contest will held on the same night as the dunk contest and the skills challenge at the Spectrum Center, home of the Charlotte Hornets.The dunk contest features Charlotte's Miles Bridges, Oklahoma City's Hamidou Diallo, Atlanta's John Collins and New York Knicks' Dennis Smith Jr.The skill challenge includes first-time NBA All-Stars Nikola Jokic... [More]

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns will look to defend his 3-point contest title at the NBA All-Star game against brothers Stephen and Seth Curry on Feb. 16 in Charlotte, North Carolina.Charlotte's Kemba Walker, Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, Portland's Damian Lillard, Milwaukee's Khris Middleton, Toronto's Danny Green, Brooklyn's Joe Harris and Sacramento's Buddy Hield round out the 10-player field.The dunk contest features Charlotte's Miles Bridges, Oklahoma City's Hamidou Diallo, Atlanta's John Collins and New York Knicks' Dennis Smith Jr.The skill challenge includes first-time NBA All-Stars Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets and Nikola Vucevic of the Magic and Luka Doncic of the Mavericks. Atlanta's Trae Young, Memphis' Mike Conley, Sacramento's De'Aaron Fox, Los Angele Lakers' Kyle Kuzma and Boston's Jayson Tatum will also compete.___More AP NBA: www.apnews.com/NBA and www.twitter.com/AP_Sports

CLEVELAND (AP) — Rodney Hood made minimal impact on the Cavaliers' postseason run last season. He'll get a chance to do more with Portland.Hood was traded Monday by the Cavaliers, who acquired guards Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin — and their expiring contracts — along with second-round picks in 2021 and 2023 from the Trail Blazers.Before the trade could be completed, the Cavaliers needed Hood to agree to the deal because he signed a one-year $3.4 million qualifying offer this summer. The 26-year-old waived his no-trade clause to join the Blazers, who are 32-20 and have the fourth best record in the Western Conference.Hood will give Portland some more scoring punch and can take some pressure off guards Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. He is averaging 12.2 points and 2.5 rebounds this season.The Cavaliers acquired Hood at the trade deadline from Utah last season, and they envisioned him being another scoring option to complement LeBron James and Kevin Love. However, the 6-foot-8 forward never... [More]

New Orleans has an All-Star for the sixth straight year.That is, unless he gets traded first.Pelicans standout Anthony Davis — only three days removed from having his trade request made known publicly — was one of the 14 players announced Thursday as reserves for the All-Star Game in Charlotte. Davis wants to be swapped out of New Orleans by the Feb. 7 trade deadline, so it remains unclear if his uniform for the All-Star contest on Feb. 17 will bear a Pelicans logo or not.It's the sixth consecutive All-Star nod for Davis. The Pelicans aren't sure if he'll play for them again, though there's also no guarantee that he gets traded by next week either."That's something that will obviously have to be discussed about what's best for him and what's best for our team," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said.The other Western Conference reserves were Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook, Denver's Nikola Jokic, Portland's Damian Lillard, Golden State's Klay Thompson, San Antonio's LaMarcus Aldridge and Minnesota's... [More]

New Orleans has an All-Star for the sixth straight year.That is, unless he gets traded first.Pelicans standout Anthony Davis — only three days removed from having his trade request made known publicly — was one of the 14 players announced Thursday as reserves for the All-Star Game in Charlotte. Davis wants to be swapped out of New Orleans by the Feb. 7 trade deadline, so it remains unclear if his uniform for the All-Star contest on Feb. 17 will bear a Pelicans logo or not.It's the sixth consecutive All-Star nod for Davis. The Pelicans aren't sure if he'll play for them again, though there's also no guarantee that he gets traded by next week either."That's something that will obviously have to be discussed about what's best for him and what's best for our team," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said.The other Western Conference reserves were Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook, Denver's Nikola Jokic, Portland's Damian Lillard, Golden State's Klay Thompson, San Antonio's LaMarcus Aldridge and Minnesota's... [More]

New Orleans has an All-Star for the sixth straight year.That is, unless he gets traded first.Pelicans standout Anthony Davis — only three days removed from having his trade request made known publicly — was one of the 14 players announced Thursday as reserves for the All-Star Game in Charlotte. Davis wants to be swapped out of New Orleans by the Feb. 7 trade deadline, so it remains unclear if his uniform for the All-Star contest on Feb. 17 will bear a Pelicans logo or not.The other Western Conference reserves were Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook, Denver's Nikola Jokic, Portland's Damian Lillard, Golden State's Klay Thompson, San Antonio's LaMarcus Aldridge and Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns.Indiana's Victor Oladipo was selected as one of the Eastern Conference reserves, even though his season is over because of injury. The other reserves from the East were Toronto's Kyle Lowry, Milwaukee's Khris Middleton, Philadelphia's Ben Simmons, Washington's Bradley Beal, Detroit's Blake Griffin... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Luke Walton began a wellness program for his Lakers coaching staff. Steve Kerr reached out to Steve Clifford after each spent significant time away from the sideline because of debilitating headaches and other symptoms.Coaches around the league are taking preventive measures to help deal with the grind and stresses of a long NBA season.That hasn't always been the case. Now, the NBA Coaches Association provides guidance to its members on everything from diet and exercise to sleep and mental health."Well, we're trying. We all are trying, we all are conscious of it," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "I don't think we're very good at it, honestly. I know I've tried. It's still very hard to accomplish. The game consumes us. It consumes me at least, and it should, if you love it. And it's just hard to turn off. It's important. We have to do it. We should have been doing it."After a late arrival in Bay Area last month, it was after 10 p.m. when Rivers had the team tissue... [More]