The Golden State Warriors don't just have streaks.They have streaks of streaks.Golden State has won 10 straight games, the longest winning streak in the NBA this season. And that makes this the sixth consecutive season that the Warriors have had a double-digit streak of victories — which ties San Antonio for the longest such run in league history. The Spurs had a 10-game streak in every season from 2010-11 through 2015-16.That said, here come the champs, again.Golden State is back atop the West, and in the mix with Milwaukee and Toronto for the NBA's best record. The stretch where the Warriors lost four straight and six of nine earlier this season, prompting whispers that the reigning back-to-back champions are vulnerable, seems long forgotten."We've got an edge about us," Warriors guard Stephen Curry said. "It hasn't been perfect and we know we can still get better, but we've talked about putting a run together for a while now and we're right in the middle of a really good one. We want... [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]

LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers is a captain and an All-Star starter — again.Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks will choose his own teammates as the other captain.And Hornets guard Kemba Walker is about to make his first All-Star start, on his home floor in Charlotte.While there were perhaps mild surprises, there were no real stunners during Thursday night's unveiling of the starters for the NBA All-Star Game that will be played in Charlotte on Feb. 17. James and Antetokounmpo are captains, their perk for being the leading vote-getters out of the Western and Eastern Conferences, and nine of this year's 10 starters have been chosen to begin All-Star Games in the past.Walker is the lone exception, and broke into a smile when realizing he was a pick."It's kind of surreal," Walker told TNT during the broadcast to announce the starters.The starting guards from the East are Boston's Kyrie Irving and Walker. The East frontcourt picks were Antetokounmpo, Toronto's Kawhi Leonard... [More]

LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks are the captains for this year's NBA All-Star Game.James and Antetokounmpo were the leading vote-getters from each conference, making them the players who will choose who plays on which team for the Feb. 17 matchup at Charlotte.They will draft their teams on Feb. 7. As the leading overall vote-getter, James will have the first pick — just as he did last year, when the captain's-choice format was used for the All-Star rosters for the first time.James extended his NBA record by being chosen as a starter for the 15th straight time. Antetokounmpo is now a three-time All-Star.The starting guards from the East are Boston's Kyrie Irving and Charlotte's Kemba Walker — who'll get to start on his home floor. The East frontcourt picks were Antetokounmpo, Toronto's Kawhi Leonard and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid. From the West, Stephen Curry and reigning NBA MVP James Harden were the picks at guard, with James, Golden... [More]

LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks are the captains for this year's NBA All-Star Game.James and Antetokounmpo were the leading vote-getters from each conference, making them the players who will choose who plays on which team for the Feb. 17 matchup at Charlotte.They will draft their teams on Feb. 7. As the leading overall vote-getter, James will have the first pick — just as he did last year, when the captain's-choice format was used for the All-Star rosters for the first time.James extended his NBA record by being chosen as a starter for the 15th straight time. Antetokounmpo is now a three-time All-Star.The starting guards from the East are Boston's Kyrie Irving and Charlotte's Kemba Walker — who'll get to start on his home floor. The East frontcourt picks were Antetokounmpo, Toronto's Kawhi Leonard and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid. From the West, Stephen Curry and reigning NBA MVP James Harden were the picks at guard, with James, Golden... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kevin Durant cherishes the opportunity to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by playing basketball on the holiday that celebrates the civil rights leader."What MLK meant to the nation and just his message around the world. Still to this day his message has touched so many people," Durant said. "It's a good opportunity to play on that day. For us it just means a lot. We carry so much. Each one of us has different journeys throughout life and for us to meet at this point to come out and play a game so special on such a special day, hopefully it brings more people together."There will be another full slate of NBA games with 22 of the league's 30 teams playing on Monday. Knicks coach David Fizdale appreciates how the NBA gives so many teams the chance to play on MLK Day — unlike the more limited schedule on Christmas."The NBA is just ahead of everything. Adam Silver and those guys just really have a progressive attitude about being inclusive, they understand our history,... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — DeMarcus Cousins was nervous. His stomach felt tight and filled with butterflies. He grabbed his phone and fired off texts to family and friends. He talked to his brother and sister.Golden State coach Steve Kerr and the rest of the Warriors reassured Cousins it wasn't just about Friday night's game against the Los Angeles Clippers.It's about the rest of his career.Making his Warriors debut after being sidelined for nearly a year, the big man called Boogie scored 14 points before fouling out of a 112-94 victory."It's been a long journey," Cousins said. "This was probably one of the best days of my life being back on the floor playing the game that I love."After missing his first shot, Cousins announced his presence with a one-handed slam off Kevin Durant's bounce pass for the Warriors' first basket."It was like poetry," teammate Stephen Curry said.Cousins was called for two fouls in the first three minutes and sat down."I'm just glad to know I can still dunk," he said.... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — DeMarcus Cousins was nervous. His stomach felt tight and filled with butterflies. He grabbed his phone and fired off texts to family and friends. He talked to his brother and sister.Golden State coach Steve Kerr and the rest of the Warriors reassured Cousins it wasn't just about Friday night's game against the Los Angeles Clippers.It's about the rest of his career.Making his Warriors debut after being sidelined for nearly a year, the big man called Boogie scored 14 points before fouling out of a 112-94 victory."It's been a long journey," Cousins said. "This was probably one of the best days of my life being back on the floor playing the game that I love."After missing his first shot, Cousins announced his presence with a one-handed slam off Kevin Durant's bounce pass for the Warriors' first basket."It was like poetry," teammate Stephen Curry said.Cousins was called for two fouls in the first three minutes and sat down."I'm just glad to know I can still dunk," he said.... [More]

DENVER (AP) — The Denver Nuggets woke up out of first place in the Western Conference for the first time in 2019.Arriving at work on Wednesday, a stark reminder of just why awaited: Watching the footage of Golden State hitting 21 3-pointers.It wasn't fun viewing.The playoff-contending Nuggets learned a hard truth in a 142-111 loss to the Warriors in which they allowed an NBA-record 51-point first quarter and all those 3-pointers: They still have plenty of work to do."This was not a blame day," coach Michael Malone said after a lively practice that followed the film session. "This was not anything of the sort. It was to watch film, to learn from it, to get better."If we want to be the team we all talk about being, we have to learn from this."In a playoff-like atmosphere Tuesday and in front of a capacity crowd at the Pepsi Center, the Nuggets couldn't raise their game .On the other side, the occasion brought out the best in the Warriors."We don't have that level yet," said Malone, whose... [More]

DENVER (AP) — The Golden State Warriors scored an NBA-record 51 points in the first quarter against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night.Kevin Durant led the way with 17 points as the Warriors shot 76 percent from the field. The team hit 10 of 14 from 3-point range, with four from Stephen Curry and three each by Klay Thompson and Durant. The Warriors led 51-38 after the quarter.The old mark for an opening quarter was 50 points and accomplished by several teams. The last time it happened was also against Denver, when Phoenix erupted for 50 on Nov. 10, 1990.Golden State and Denver are the top two teams in the Western Conference.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — DeMarcus Cousins will start immediately for coach Steve Kerr when the All-Star center makes his long-awaited Warriors debut in about a week following a lengthy recovery from surgery on a torn left Achilles tendon.Cousins has targeted Golden State's game Jan. 18 at the Clippers as his return date and first game of the season, though Kerr said it could even be sooner if all continues going well — perhaps even against his former New Orleans team at home next Wednesday."The idea is we have to give ourselves a little leeway," Kerr said Thursday. "That Clipper game is sort of the one we've targeted but we should give ourselves some leeway on either side, because we have to see how the next week goes. I suppose it's a possibility that it could be New Orleans, maybe there's a possibility it's whoever's after the Clippers ... Lakers. That's the range that we're looking at."The coaching staff has spent the past couple of weeks more intensely planning for Cousins' return and... [More]

Imagine this: Kevin Durant is out of bounds by an enormous margin, all three referees somehow miss the obvious infraction and Golden State winds up getting a basket that it didn't deserve to take the lead with a few seconds remaining.It seemed implausible.That is, until it happened.When such a scene played out last week in the Houston-Golden State overtime thriller, James Harden kept a ton of egg from landing on the NBA's face when he connected on a 3-pointer to give the Rockets a win in a game they would have screamed bloody murder about otherwise. But what if he missed? Or worse, if a call that big got missed in Game 7 of the NBA Finals?"How do you miss that?" TNT analyst Reggie Miller mused while watching the Durant replay.An obvious question, with an obvious answer: It's time for a change.Everyone in the NBA replay center in Secaucus, New Jersey that night surely saw Durant standing out of bounds. But there is no mechanism for the replay crews to trigger a review of such a play — since,... [More]

With eight shopping days to Christmas, the NBA's decision to have Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid in its holiday lineup is more than just sides in another hoop smorgasbord.It puts the spotlight on — and raises a question — about the MVP race, as in, who in the Eastern Conference is a legitimate contender. It's a question because the last East MVP, LeBron James going on six years ago, has moved West.Of course, the conversation has to include the biggest name to go the opposite direction this past offseason: Toronto's Kawhi Leonard, who forced his way out of San Antonio in a trade after missing most of last season with a mysterious leg injury."Oh yeah," first-year Atlanta coach Lloyd Pierce declared about the East's MVP hopes."We missed Kawhi last year and the people that coached against him didn't for a reason," said Pierce, who was an assistant with the 76ers for Embiid's first two seasons. "He's a dominant two-way player. Antetokounmpo is unbelievable and... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Warriors star Stephen Curry didn't mean it.Curry told ESPN this week he was joking when he questioned on a podcast whether astronauts landed on the moon, comments that sent social media into a tizzy.He also said he will accept NASA's invitation to tour the lunar lab at the Johnson Space Center in Houston."Obviously I was joking when I was talking on the podcast," Curry told ESPN. "(Then) I was silently protesting how stupid it was that people actually took that quote and made it law as, 'Oh my God, he's a fake-moon-landing truther,' whatever you want to call it, yada, yada, yada. So I was silently protesting that part about it, how the story took a life of its own."But in terms of the reaction that I've gotten, I am definitely going to take (NASA) up on their offer."___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kawhi Leonard sat out Toronto's showdown against the Golden State Warriors because of a bruised right hip.The star forward was inactive for the second straight game Wednesday night, but the Raptors cruised to a 113-93 win at Golden State.Earlier in the day, Leonard was deemed questionable while getting treatment on his hip. Toronto coach Nick Nurse spoke to reporters 90 minutes before tip-off and said he was uncertain about Leonard's status.The Raptors improved their NBA-best record to 23-7. They beat the Los Angeles Clippers 123-99 without Leonard on Tuesday night and then completed a season sweep of the two-time defending champion Warriors.Toronto beat Golden State 131-128 in overtime on Nov. 29. The Warriors played that game without All-Stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, both of whom were back in the lineup for the rematch Wednesday.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kawhi Leonard is sitting out Toronto's showdown against the Golden State Warriors because of a bruised right hip.The star forward is inactive for the second straight game. Earlier in the day, he was deemed questionable while getting treatment on his hip. Raptors coach Nick Nurse spoke to reporters 90 minutes before tip-off and said he was uncertain about Leonard's status.The Raptors began the night with the best record in the NBA at 22-7. They beat the Los Angeles Clippers 123-99 without Leonard on Tuesday night and are seeking a season sweep of the two-time defending champion Warriors.Toronto beat Golden State 131-128 in overtime on Nov. 29. The Warriors played that game without All-Stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, both of whom were back in the lineup for the rematch Wednesday night.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — As the Santa Cruz Warriors huddled after practice, Darius Morris provided a quick recap of his adventure to the Arizona desert a day earlier to interview with the Suns. Phoenix needed a point guard given Devin Booker's hamstring injury, and Morris was at least in the mix.Santa Cruz coach Aaron Miles, who so wishes he were still playing professionally, had a little fun leading the offense in Morris' absence.Just one example of life in the topsy-turvy, changing-by-the-day G League, when Golden State or another club might come calling at a moment's notice to swipe a top player for promotion to the NBA.Or, as is the case for Santa Cruz this week, send one of the NBA's best big men out on rehab assignment.Miles will have the chance to work alongside DeMarcus Cousins, assigned to Santa Cruz on Monday as he continues his rehab from left Achilles tendon surgery. Cousins' younger brother, Jaleel, is on the team, too.One moment, Miles might be setting a screen or bouncing... [More]

So much changed after Kawhi Leonard crashed to the Oracle Arena floor on May 14, 2017.The San Antonio Spurs had a 23-point lead on the Warriors in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals when Leonard departed with 26 points, poised to take away home-court advantage in the series between teams who won more than 60 games.Leonard injured his ankle when he landed on Zaza Pachulia's foot after taking a jump shot, and things were never the same again for the Spurs or Leonard. The Spurs couldn't hold on to win that game or any other in the series without their All-Star forward, whose ankle injury would be followed by a lingering thigh injury that would limit him to just nine games the following season and strain relations between the team and player. Leonard was ultimately granted his desire to leave San Antonio when he was traded to Toronto in the offseason.If Leonard doesn't go down, maybe the Spurs win that game, maybe the series and maybe another championship. Maybe Leonard wouldn't have wanted... [More]

So much changed after Kawhi Leonard crashed to the Oracle Arena floor on May 14, 2017.The San Antonio Spurs had a 23-point lead on the Warriors in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals when Leonard departed with 26 points, poised to take away home-court advantage in the series between teams who won more than 60 games.Leonard injured his ankle when he landed on Zaza Pachulia's foot after taking a jump shot, and things were never the same again for the Spurs or Leonard. The Spurs couldn't hold on to win that game or any other in the series without their All-Star forward, whose ankle injury would be followed by a lingering thigh injury that would limit him to just nine games the following season and strain relations between the team and player. Leonard was ultimately granted his desire to leave San Antonio when he was traded to Toronto in the offseason.If Leonard doesn't go down, maybe the Spurs win that game, maybe the series and maybe another championship. Maybe Leonard wouldn't have wanted... [More]

Vince Carter could have gone anywhere.To a contender, to chase a ring. To retirement, because he has nothing left to prove. To television, which seems like it will be his next vocation whenever his playing days end.Instead, he chose Atlanta — a young team, a rebuilding team, a team that probably has minimal chance of making the playoffs.And he's happy."I'm with a great bunch of guys," Carter said. "I enjoy helping young guys who want to learn, who are willing to be coached and let you coach them and ask questions. It's a small thing, but it's a major thing — because if you're asking questions, that means you're trying to learn and grow. And these guys are all great."He's the NBA's oldest active player, someone who turns 42 next month. When he was drafted in June 1998, neither Trae Young nor Kevin Huerter had been born yet. And they're the starting backcourt for the Hawks this season, Carter's 21st in the league, with Atlanta being the eighth team he's played with.Carter talked with Dwyane... [More]