CLEVELAND (AP) — Minnesota built a big lead, wasted it and then had to build another one.“Sometimes," Timberwolves coach Ryan Saunders said, "you have to win a game twice.” Gorgui Dieng scored 22 points, Shabazz Napier had 21 and the Timberwolves blew a 25-point lead before regrouping for a 118-103 victory Sunday night over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who may have lost rookie Kevin Porter Jr. for an extended period with a knee injury.The Cavs, who rested star Kevin Love one night after he displayed frustration toward his teammates in a loss, trailed 90-65 with four minutes to go in the third quarter and seemed done. But Dante Exum got hot and his 3-pointer with 8:29 left capped a 32-6 blitz to give Cleveland a 97-96 lead.However, the Timberwolves recovered and scored 14 straight with Dieng dropping two 3-pointers during the five-minute stretch to help Minnesota avoid an embarrassing loss.“We just ran out of gas,” Cavs coach John Beilein said.Andrew Wiggins came back after missing four games... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Minnesota built a big lead, wasted it and then had to build another one.“Sometimes," Timberwolves coach Ryan Saunders said, "you have to win a game twice.” Gorgui Dieng scored 22 points, Shabazz Napier had 21 and the Timberwolves blew a 25-point lead before regrouping for a 118-103 victory Sunday night over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who may have lost rookie Kevin Porter Jr. for an extended period with a knee injury.The Cavs, who rested star Kevin Love one night after he displayed frustration toward his teammates in a loss, trailed 90-65 with four minutes to go in the third quarter and seemed done. But Dante Exum got hot and his 3-pointer with 8:29 left capped a 32-6 blitz to give Cleveland a 97-96 lead.However, the Timberwolves recovered and scored 14 straight with Dieng dropping two 3-pointers during the five-minute stretch to help Minnesota avoid an embarrassing loss.“We just ran out of gas,” Cavs coach John Beilein said.Andrew Wiggins came back after missing four games... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Gorgui Dieng scored 22 points, Shabazz Napier had 21 and the Minnesota Timberwolves blew a 25-point lead before regrouping for a 118-103 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.Cleveland rested disgruntled forward Kevin Love and may have lost rookie Kevin Porter Jr. for an extended period with a knee injury.The Cavs trailed 90-65 with four minutes to go in the third quarter and seemed done. But Dante Exum got hot and his 3-pointer with 8:29 left capped a 32-6 blitz to give Cleveland a 97-96 lead, .The Timberwolves recovered and scored 14 straight with Dieng dropping two 3-pointers during the five-minute stretch to help Minnesota avoid an embarrassing loss.Andrew Wiggins came back after missing four games with the flu and scored 15 points for the Timberwolves. They won for just the fourth time in 16 games.Exum, recently acquired in a trade with Utah, scored a career-high 28 points — 24 in the second half — for the Cavs. They dropped their fourth in a row amid... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Gorgui Dieng scored 22 points, Shabazz Napier had 21 and the Minnesota Timberwolves blew a 25-point lead before regrouping for a 118-103 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.Cleveland rested disgruntled forward Kevin Love and may have lost rookie Kevin Porter Jr. for an extended period with a knee injury.The Cavs trailed 90-65 with four minutes to go in the third quarter and seemed done. But Dante Exum got hot and his 3-pointer with 8:29 left capped a 32-6 blitz to give Cleveland a 97-96 lead, .The Timberwolves recovered and scored 14 straight with Dieng dropping two 3-pointers during the five-minute stretch to help Minnesota avoid an embarrassing loss.Andrew Wiggins came back after missing four games with the flu and scored 15 points for the Timberwolves. They won for just the fourth time in 16 games.Exum, recently acquired in a trade with Utah, scored a career-high 28 points — 24 in the second half — for the Cavs. Theydropped their fourth in a row amid... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns missed the Timberwolves' game Wednesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans because of a left knee sprain. Coach Ryan Saunders called Towns “day-to-day” with the injury. Minnesota hasn't played since a 124-117 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Dec. 13 when Towns had 39 points and 12 rebounds in 35:15. In the fourth quarter, Towns went down hard after a missed dunk attempt while being guarded by Montrezl Harrell.Towns leads the Timberwolves at 26.5 points and 11.7 rebounds per game this season. He missed two games this season after being suspended for a confrontation with Philadelphia's Joel Embiid.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — Philadelphia center Joel Embiid and Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns have each been suspended two games without pay for an on-court altercation and continued escalation.Kiki VanDeWeghe, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations, announced the suspensions Thursday, a day after the undefeated 76ers' 117-95 home victory over the Timberwolves.The star players were ejected after tangling with 6:42 left in the third quarter and the 76ers ahead 75-55. Embiid shoved Towns, who answered with a punch that missed as both men fell to the floor. Philadelphia's Ben Simmons jumped in and forcefully held Towns down as other players and coaches ran onto the court."I didn't throw any punches, so I shouldn't get suspended," Embiid said Wednesday night.They were ejected after a video review."We deemed the altercation a fight. Therefore, by rule, they're both ejected," said Mark Ayotte, the officials' crew chief. "I just saw them each lock arms. And that escalated to the... [More]

Preseason numbers often mean almost nothing. Rotations are unusual, starters rarely play much, and few if any teams are putting a premium on winning games.As such, it's tough to glean much from exhibition stats.But what the Boston Celtics and New Orleans rookie Zion Williamson — the No. 1 pick in this year's draft — have been doing so far in the preseason certainly stands out.The Celtics are 3-0 after beating Cleveland on Sunday — and have put together a huge run in all three of those games. The latest was a 50-17 spurt against the Cavaliers, a game that was close for most of the first quarter before Boston built what eventually became a 54-point lead.Boston's other big runs of note in this preseason were a 41-17 stretch last Sunday against Charlotte, and opening the game with a 29-4 burst at Orlando on Friday. On top of the 50-17 run against the Cavs, they added a 26-8 run in the fourth quarter as well.No matter who the Celtics have on the court, defense has been the constant. Boston is... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The tension that the Minnesota Timberwolves lugged into last season has been long stamped out, replaced by talk of creating culture, establishing process and building relationships under a new regime.This team will be flying under the radar in the star-bursting Western Conference, facing a steep climb to the fringe of the playoff picture after finishing in 11th place in 2018-19. How much impact a fully healthy roster, an upbeat mood and a modernized on-court strategy will ultimately have on performance remains a mystery, but for now it's clear at least that these players have been enjoying each other's company.Whether through a trip to the Bahamas led by center Karl-Anthony Towns or the well-attended informal workouts on the court at team headquarters, the Timberwolves didn't have to share how-they-spent-their-summer-vacation stories when they showed up on Monday for the start of training camp. They spent so much of the offseason together they already knew the details."They've... [More]

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — DeMarcus Cousins is facing rehab from another major injury, and the Los Angeles Lakers have endured their first big problem of a season with championship expectations.Cousins was diagnosed Thursday with a torn ACL in his left knee, an injury that could sideline the six-time All-Star big man for much — if not all — of this coming season. Cousins' agent, Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management, said a timeline for surgery is being discussed.Cousins, who spent last season with Golden State, got hurt earlier this week in a workout in Las Vegas. The ACL tear comes about 18 months after he ruptured his left Achilles tendon, and roughly four months after he tore his left quadriceps muscle during this past season's playoffs.Those previous injuries cost him a lot of games and a lot of money.This injury is only going to add to those totals."He was going to be a big part of what we're going to do," Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma said after USA Basketball practice at the Lakers'... [More]

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — DeMarcus Cousins is now facing rehab from another major injury, and the Los Angeles Lakers have endured their first big problem of a season with championship expectations.Cousins was diagnosed Thursday with a torn ACL in his left knee, an injury that could sideline the six-time All-Star big man for much — if not all — of this coming season. Cousins' agent, Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management, said a timeline for surgery is being discussed.Cousins got hurt earlier this week in a workout in Las Vegas. The ACL tear comes about 18 months after he ruptured his left Achilles, and roughly four months after he tore his left quadriceps muscle.Those previous injuries cost him a lot of games and a lot of money.This injury is only going to add to those totals."He was going to be a big part of what we're going to do," Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma said after USA Basketball practice at the Lakers' facility on Thursday, shortly after the severity of Cousins' injury was confirmed.The... [More]

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — DeMarcus Cousins is now facing rehab from another major injury, and the Los Angeles Lakers have endured their first big problem of a season with championship expectations.Cousins was diagnosed Thursday with a torn ACL in his left knee, an injury that could sideline the six-time All-Star big man for much — if not all — of this coming season. Cousins' agent, Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management, said a timeline for surgery is being discussed.Cousins got hurt earlier this week in a workout in Las Vegas. The ACL tear comes about 18 months after he ruptured his left Achilles, and roughly four months after he tore his left quadriceps muscle.Those previous injuries cost him a lot of games and a lot of money.This injury is only going to add to those totals.The Achilles tear preceded Cousins' 2018 trip to free agency, one where he could have commanded a multi-year deal exceeding $100 million. He wound up having to sign a one-year, $5.3 million contract with Golden State.And... [More]

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles Lakers center DeMarcus Cousins was scheduled for tests on Thursday amid fears that he has a torn ACL, which would be a third major injury in less than two years for the once-perennial All-Star.Cousins got hurt in a workout in Las Vegas earlier this week, a person with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because no official diagnosis has been released publicly.ESPN first reported that Cousins was injured.If the fears are confirmed, Cousins would almost certainly miss much — if not all — of the coming season. And his run of amazingly bad luck, costing him a lot of games and an enormous amount of money, would continue as well.He tore his Achilles in February 2018, a few months before he could have commanded a massive contract in free agency. He wound up signing with Golden State for the relatively low price of $5.3 million, sat out much of last season while rehabbing the Achilles, and then was sidelined again for... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo and James Harden got the most votes, and Damian Lillard and Kemba Walker also were big winners when the All-NBA teams were announced.Those guards can cash in with supermax contracts based on their selections to one of the three All-NBA teams that were announced Thursday.LeBron James also was voted to the third team, tying the NBA record with his 15th All-NBA selection.Rounding out the first team were Stephen Curry, Paul George and Nikola Jokic, who was Denver's first All-NBA selection since Carmelo Anthony in 2010.Antetokounmpo and Harden were unanimous selections, receiving all 100 votes from a panel of writers and broadcasters who had to choose two guards, two forwards and one center for each of the three teams.Walker was the final selection but all that matters is that he made it. By doing so, he became eligible to receive a five-year contract extension worth about $221 million from the Hornets if he opts to stay in Charlotte, a reward the NBA put... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo and James Harden got the most votes, and Damian Lillard and Kemba Walker were also big winners when the All-NBA teams were announced.Those guards can cash in with supermax contracts based on their selections to one of the three All-NBA teams that were announced Thursday.LeBron James also was voted to the third team, tying the NBA record with his 15th All-NBA selection.Rounding out the first team were Stephen Curry, Paul George and Nikola Jokic, who was Denver's first All-NBA selection since Carmelo Anthony in 2010.Antetokounmpo and Harden were unanimous selections, receiving all 100 votes from a panel of sports writers and broadcasters who had to choose two guards, two forwards for each of the three teams.Walker was the final selection but all that matters is that he made it. By doing so, he became eligible to receive a five-year contract extension worth about $221 million from the Hornets if he opts to stay in Charlotte, a reward the NBA put in recently... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Three decades after their entry into the NBA, the Minnesota Timberwolves have deployed an aggressive plan to modernize their operation.What better way, they concluded, than to hire the youngest head coach in the league?Ryan Saunders, at the ripe old age of 33, has been tasked with using his lifelong passion for the organization, player-friendly communication style and tech-savvy analytical skill to help take the Timberwolves to championship contention, something they've only briefly reached in a mostly clumsy history. Saunders, the first millennial to hold the job in the NBA, is the 13th head coach the franchise has had in 30 seasons."It was hard for me to find another leader who could connect with our players at the level he has connected, not just on the court but off the court," said president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas, who feted Saunders at a news conference just two weeks after his own introduction . "It was hard for me to find a leader that shares my... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Timberwolves have chosen Ryan Saunders as their full-fledged head coach — and the first millennial to hold the job in the NBA.The team announced Monday that the 33-year-old Saunders will stay in the post he held on an interim basis during the second half of this past season, the role long held by his father. The widely expected decision was made by new president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas."I've known Ryan for many years and have always respected his approach to the game, work ethic, basketball knowledge and passion," Rosas said in a statement."His coaching style and philosophies are ideal for the modern NBA, and I am confident that as a partner he will get the most out of our players as we build an identity and a sustainable winning model."With Saunders and the 40-year-old Rosas, the Timberwolves have a leadership duo that, at the combined age of 73, is only three years older than San Antonio president and coach Gregg Popovich and 12 years older... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Gersson Rosas has firsthand experience with success from unconventional strategy from his 17-year run with the Houston Rockets.An outside-the-box approach might be necessary, if the Minnesota Timberwolves are going to catch up in the cutthroat Western Conference."We're going to question the norm with everything that we do," Rosas said.The first Latino to lead an NBA front office has landed with a 30-year-old franchise defined by bad-luck setbacks and self-induced dysfunction as much as any accomplishments on the court. The hiring of Rosas as president of basketball operations was greenlighted by Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor as the remedy to one of the latest backfires, the hiring of Tom Thibodeau three years ago for the dual role of president and coach.As Taylor and chief executive officer Ethan Casson narrowed their search, they couldn't help but notice Rosas appeared as confident and eager about joining them as they were about offering the job to him. The Timberwolves... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Rarely has a pro sports team experienced such a difference in drama levels from the start to finish of one season that these Minnesota Timberwolves did.As the Timberwolves wound down the second half of their schedule that was as dull as the first part was eventful, they were outspoken in their desire to establish a healthier and steadier environment for 2019-20 in which the excitement would be confined to contention for the playoffs instead of off-the-court issues."Stability is such a big key component in winning in the NBA," All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns said this week. "So hopefully this summer we can find that stability in our coaching staff and everything and find a way to come back ready to go and have a head start this time."Soap opera status was achieved before training, when Jimmy Butler's wish to be traded after just one season in Minnesota became public. Tom Thibodeau, one of the rare dual-role president-coach authorities remaining in the league who acquired Butler... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — An MRI on Karl-Anthony Towns' sore right knee came back normal, providing some relief for the worried Minnesota Timberwolves.Towns limped off the court in the final seconds of regulation during Saturday night's 135-130 overtime victory over Washington. He finished with 40 points and 16 rebounds.Towns was ruled out for Sunday's game against the New York Knicks with knee inflammation. But it could have been much worse.Towns is averaging 24.5 points and 12.3 rebounds this season. The two-time All-Star missed two games in February after suffering a concussion in a traffic accident — the first games he had missed in his four-year career.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns was in the passenger seat on his way to meet the Minnesota Timberwolves at the airport when a semitruck slammed into the back of the vehicle at what he estimated was between 35 and 45 mph.As soon as the medical exam confirmed the injuries were minor, the two-time All-Star center quickly began thinking about whether he could still join his team in time for the next game. He knew he was fortunate, though, to have escaped the crash at all."I'd say I had a 5 percent chance of making it out alive," Towns said Monday before Minnesota's game against Sacramento. He added: "I probably should not have made it out like I did, but I'm glad I did."As are the Timberwolves, of course, and his family."You obviously want to make sure KAT the person is taken care of," coach Ryan Saunders said, confirming that Towns would play against the Kings. "That's definitely put ahead of KAT the basketball player."Assistant strength and conditioning coach Kurt Joseph was driving... [More]