DENVER (AP) — Nuggets coach Michael Malone kept the mood light at practice Monday and the lectures to a minimum.No reason to get too worked up over Denver's current three-game skid. After all, this is the same bunch that began 9-1 for one of the best starts in franchise history.Malone's missive to his team: Rediscover that resolve."It's too early in the season to have their heads down and have it be gloom and doom," said Malone, whose team hosts James Harden, Chris Paul and the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night. "We're young. Some of these guys are in moments they haven't been in before. That's my job, to teach and keep this team moving along in the right direction."Given their recent history, there's a sense of early season urgency. That's understandable since the Nuggets missed the playoffs by a game in each of the last two years. They don't want piled-up losses in November to come back and haunt them in April.Especially since everything was going so smoothly out of the gate. But the Nuggets... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA has fined Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic $25,000 for using derogatory and offensive language during a postgame interview.Jokic made his comments to the media following the Nuggets' 108-107 overtime victory against the Chicago Bulls on Oct. 31.The fine was handed down Wednesday by league discipline executive Kiki VanDeWeghe.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DENVER (AP) — Fair warning: Don't challenge Nikola Jokic and Gary Harris to a game of Spikeball.The Denver duo are the team's undisputed champions of a sport that's a little like volleyball, only players hit the ball off a trampoline-style net that's set up on the ground. They recently won a team tournament."It's the perfect sport for me," the 6-foot-10 Jokic said.Or basketball. Because he's pretty good at that, too.The versatile big man averaged 18.5 points, 10.7 rebounds and 6.1 assists last season. His reward from the Nuggets was a max contract worth around $147 million for five seasons.Next on The Joker's to-do list: Lead the Nuggets back to the postseason for the first time since 2012-13. Denver lost out on the eighth and final playoff spot last season with an overtime loss in Minnesota during their last game."We have an identity now and Nikola is a huge part of that identity," coach Michael Malone said. "He's slowly and surely having that confidence and that swagger to be a franchise... [More]

Editors:To help you plan for the upcoming NBA season, here are some of AP's plans before games begin Oct. 16. Please contact Oscar Dixon (odixon@ap.org) with any questions. All times Eastern. This advisory will be updated and is subject to change.PRESEASONThe AP is providing a daily roundup of preseason games, leading with the top angle of the night.UPCOMING STORIES:BKN--Magic-CliffordORLANDO, Fla. — Steve Clifford is sleeping more every night now, part of his commitment to health after a huge scare last season. But he knows that taking over as coach of the Orlando Magic and starting a rebuilding job will be an enormous challenge nonetheless — no matter how much more sleep he gets. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 2 p.m. Oct. 8BKN--NBA Diversity-Front OfficesThe NBA usually gets high marks for its diversity efforts and is widely viewed as a leader on social issues. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver believes the league needs to be better, and he made his feelings... [More]

DENVER (AP) — The debates have been so lively inside the Denver Nuggets locker room recently that coach Michael Malone wanders in to make sure everything's all right.Just the enthusiasm of guard Isaiah Thomas bubbling to the surface. He's turning up the intensity with his booming voice in what's been a rather quiet room.Think he's chatty now, wait until he's fully cleared after undergoing hip surgery in March. That's when he will do his real talking — with his play.Thomas hopes to provide another spark to a Nuggets team that hasn't reached the postseason since 2012-13. Last season, the team went down to the wire, with the Nuggets losing out on the No. 8 seed to Minnesota in the final game — a stinging 112-106 overtime defeat."We just have to be more consistent and take things more serious and I think that's what I'm here for," said Thomas, who signed a $2 million, one-year deal in the offseason to prove his hip is healthy and worth a more lucrative contract. "I'm not saying I'm the guy... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Brooklyn Nets have acquired forwards Kenneth Faried and Darrell Arthur along with a 2019 first-round pick from the Denver Nuggets.The Nets also received a second-round pick in 2020 in the trade announced Friday. They sent guard Isaiah Whitehead to Denver.Denver, looking to cut costs after giving new deals to Nikola Jokic and Will Barton, subsequently waived Whitehead.Faried averaged 11.4 points and 8.2 rebounds in seven seasons in Denver, though his playing time declined and he appeared in just 32 games last season. Arthur has spent nine seasons in the NBA, first with Memphis and the last five with Denver.Both players are in the final years of their contracts. Faried is due $13.8 million next season and Arthur $7.5 million.Whitehead, a second-round pick in 2016, appeared in 89 games over two seasons for Brooklyn.___More AP basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

DENVER (AP) — Now that the Denver Nuggets have a player they coveted in the NBA draft, their focus shifts to the start of free agency next week.Michael Porter Jr. went to the Nuggets at No. 14 Thursday night, giving them a potential impact player. Now the priority this offseason is keeping their own free agents and locking down the face of the franchise.Center and budding superstar Nikola Jokic is the top priority, and president of basketball operations Tim Connelly has said the Nuggets want to sign him to a long-term contract before he hits the market next summer."Nikola's going to be here for a long, long time," Connelly said. "Whatever we do, we're going to ensure that he's here as long as possible. We'll talk to Nikola, his brothers and his representation and he'll be in Denver for a long, long time. He'll be buying here."Will Barton is an unrestricted free agent and forward Wilson Chandler can opt out of the last year of his deal. Connelly said the Nuggets want to retain both."Will... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly says contract extensions for center Nikola Jokic and guard Will Barton are among his offseason priorities and he hinted coach Michael Malone might be in line for one, too.The Nuggets have increased their win totals from 30 to 40 to 46 under Malone but they extended their playoff drought to five years when they lost in overtime at Minnesota in the season finale this week."This is the most confident I've been in our core group since I've been here," said Connelly, who's been in his post in Denver since 2013. "I think we have the makings of a team that can enjoy sustainably high levels of success."I think there's going to be some pretty interesting financial decisions we'll make this offseason."Jokic was drafted in the second round in 2014 and signed a three-year, $4 million deal a year later. The Nuggets have a $1.6 million fourth-year option, which they can decline this summer and instead give Jokic a max contract.While that would crimp... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic only had a basic outline of his offseason plans: Rest, work out in Denver, return home to Serbia and rest some more.It's not more elaborate since the Nuggets big man figured he'd be working for a while longer.The Nuggets won six more games than a year ago and yet finished in the same position — a spot out of the playoffs. This season even came down to a winner-take-all scenario in Minnesota, where the Nuggets came up short in overtime to miss out on the playoffs for a fifth straight season."I'm not mad. I'm not sad, because I think we played good," Jokic said Thursday. "We're not making the playoffs because we were not focused the whole season, every game."Still, the Nuggets won six straight down the stretch to climb into contention for a spot, before losing to the Timberwolves in a spirited game."If we play with that sense of urgency that we did at the end, then we wouldn't have even been in this position," Will Barton said. "It's all a part of growing."Veteran... [More]

PHOENIX -- Tyson Chandler slammed home an alley-oop dunk off a Dragan Bender inbounds feed with four-tenths of a second left, and the Phoenix Suns held off the Memphis Grizzlies for the second time in six days with a 99-97 win on Tuesday night.Memphis tied the score at 97 when Jarell Martin slammed home a Tyreke Evans miss with six-tenths of a second left and the teams seems headed to overtime. With the subsequent inbounds play moved to midcourt, Bender threw the ball just over the far side of the rim, where Chandler was waiting to slam it down.Devin Booker had 32 points in his return to the lineup for the Suns, who beat the Grizzlies 97-95 on Dec. 21 when Evans missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. TJ Warren finished with 17 points for Phoenix, which gave coach Jay Triano his 100th NBA win.Evans had 25 points and Marc Gasol scored 18 for Memphis, which lost for the 20th time in 24 games.Mavericks 98, Raptors 93DALLAS -- J.J. Barea scored a team-high 20 points to lead Dallas past Toronto.Dirk... [More]

PHOENIX -- Tyson Chandler slammed home an alley-oop dunk off a Dragan Bender inbounds feed with four-tenths of a second left, and the Phoenix Suns held off the Memphis Grizzlies for the second time in six days with a 99-97 win on Tuesday night.Memphis tied the score at 97 when Jarell Martin slammed home a Tyreke Evans miss with six-tenths of a second left and the teams seems headed to overtime. With the subsequent inbounds play moved to midcourt, Bender threw the ball just over the far side of the rim, where Chandler was waiting to slam it down.Devin Booker had 32 points in his return to the lineup for the Suns, who beat the Grizzlies 97-95 on Dec. 21 when Evans missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. TJ Warren finished with 17 points for Phoenix, which gave coach Jay Triano his 100th NBA win.Evans had 25 points and Marc Gasol scored 18 for Memphis, which lost for the 20th time in 24 games.Mavericks 98, Raptors 93DALLAS -- J.J. Barea scored a team-high 20 points to lead Dallas past Toronto.Dirk... [More]

HOUSTON -- Austin Rivers caught fire in the second half and, with some help from Lou Williams, shot the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers past the Houston Rockets 128-118 on Friday night at Toyota Center.Rivers scored 30 of his team-high 36 points on 10-of-18 shooting in the second half, drilling 5 of 10 3-pointers down the stretch to keep the injury-riddled Rockets (25-6) at bay.Williams, traded by Houston in the offseason as part of the blockbuster Chris Paul acquisition, scored 32 points. Rivers and Williams combined to shoot 13 for 24 from behind the arc to offset another breathtaking performance from Rockets guard James Harden, who posted his second consecutive 51-point outing.Harden finished 15 of 28 from the floor and 15 of 16 from the free-throw line while adding eight assists. Eric Gordon chipped in 28 points for Houston, which closed a season-long seven-game homestand with consecutive losses to the Los Angeles teams.Warriors 113, Lakers 106OAKLAND, Calif. -- Golden State regained... [More]

WASHINGTON -- Harrison Barnes scored 31 points as the Dallas Mavericks, owners of the NBA's worst record, upset the Washington Wizards 113-99 on Tuesday night.Dennis Smith Jr. had 22 points and Wesley Matthews 14 for the Mavericks, who had lost six games in a row and were winless in five previous road games.John Wall had 23 points and 14 assists for the Wizards in his return to the lineup. Wall sat out Washington's 107-96 win at Toronto on Sunday after injuring his left shoulder Friday in a home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.Bradley Beal also scored 23 points for the Wizards, who have lost three straight road games and are 2-5 since their 3-0 start.Spurs 120, Clippers 107SAN ANTONIO -- LaMarcus Aldridge scored 25 points and Danny Green added a season-high 24 as San Antonio won its third straight.San Antonio scored a season-high 40 points in the third quarter, 26 of which came in the final six minutes.Austin Rivers scored a season-high 24 points to lead the Clippers, who have lost five... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Detroit Pistons were more than happy to take what the Warriors gave them, turning Golden State's season-high 25 turnovers into a 115-107 win over the defending NBA champs on Sunday.It was the third consecutive win for the Pistons, the second in as many nights on their West Coast road trip. Avery Bradley led the Pistons with 23 points, one more than Reggie Jackson, who had all but two of his points in the first half.Klay Thompson had 29, Kevin Durant 28 and Stephen Curry 27 and eight assists for the Warriors.Pacers 97, Spurs 94INDIANAPOLIS -- Victor Oladipo scored 23 points, including the decisive 3-pointer, to lift Indiana past San Antonio.LaMarcus Aldridge scored 26 points lead San Antonio, which lost its second game in a row after a four-game, season-opening winning streak.Oladipo sank a 3-pointer with 10.3 seconds to go to give Indiana a 95-94 lead. Aldridge missed a jumper with 5.1 seconds left. Cory Joseph was fouled with 3.4 seconds remaining and hit both free... [More]

INDIANAPOLIS -- Victor Oladipo scored 23 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer, to lift the Indiana Pacers to a 97-94 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.LaMarcus Aldridge scored 26 points lead San Antonio, which lost its second game in a row after a four-game, season-opening winning streak.Oladipo sank a 3-pointer with 10.3 seconds to go to give Indiana a 95-94 lead. Aldridge missed a jumper with 5.1 seconds left. Cory Joseph was fouled with 3.4 seconds remaining and hit both free throws to push the lead to three.Patty Mills missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer just before the buzzer.Knicks 114, Cavaliers 95CLEVELAND -- Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 34 points to lead New York to a stunning win over Cleveland.The Knicks' previous win over Cleveland came on Oct. 30, 2014, in LeBron James' return debut with the Cavs. New York had lost 10 straight to Cleveland, which is in the midst of a three-game losing streak.Kristaps Porzingis added 32 points and 12 rebounds for the Knicks.... [More]

INDIANAPOLIS -- Victor Oladipo scored 23 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer, to lift the Indiana Pacers to a 97-94 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.LaMarcus Aldridge scored 26 points lead San Antonio, which has lost two in a row.Oladipo sank a 3-pointer with 10.3 seconds to go to give Indiana a 95-94 lead. Aldridge missed a jumper with 5.1 seconds left. Cory Joseph was fouled with 3.4 seconds remaining and hit both free throws to push the lead to 97-94.Patty Mills missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer just before the buzzer.Bucks 117, Hawks 106ATLANTA -- Forward Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points, his fifth 30-point game of the season, to spark Milwaukee to a win over Atlanta.Antetokounmpo picked up his fourth double-double of the season. He was 14-for-21 from the field, one of them a 3-pointer, and added 12 rebounds and five assists to give the Bucks their second straight win.The Bucks also got a season-high 27 points from Khris Middleton, who added seven rebounds... [More]

Free agent forward Paul Millsap signed a multi-year contract with the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, making official what had been reported earlier.While the club did not divulge the details, multiple outlets previously reported the agreement was for three years and $90 million.Millsap talked with the Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns before deciding to sign with the Nuggets.Millsap was an All-Star with the Atlanta Hawks each of the past four seasons.The 11-year veteran will be paired with budding star center Nikola Jokic, giving the Nuggets the makings of a powerful frontcourt.The 6-foot-8 Millsap averaged 18.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game last season. He is a strong interior defender, something the Nuggets need after ranking 29th of 30 teams in defensive efficiency last season.Millsap averaged 24.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists in the Hawks' first-round playoff loss to the Washington Wizards in April.

Rookie of the Year Karl-Anthony Towns of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Kristaps Porzingis of the New York Knicks were unanimous selections on the NBA All-Rookie Team, the NBA announced Thursday.Joining Towns and Porzingis on the first team are Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns, Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and Jahlil Okafor of the Philadelphia 76ers.The second team consists of Miami's Justise Winslow, the Los Angeles Lakers' D'Angelo Russell, Denver's Emmanuel Mudiay, Indiana's Myles Turner and Sacramento's Willie Cauley-Stein.Towns averaged 18.3 points and 10.5 rebounds while unanimously winning top rookie honors. The league announced Towns as Rookie of the Year on Monday.Porzingis averaged 14.3 points and 7.3 rebounds, while Booker averaged 13.8 points and made 99 3-point baskets.Jokic averaged 10 points and seven rebounds per game, while Okafor averaged 17.7 points and seven rebounds.

Jokic accrued 14 points (6-9 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 2-3 FT), five rebounds, and three steals over 20 minutes in Thursday's exhibition win over the Bulls.

Jokic provided a huge spark off the bench that allowed the Nuggets to pull away in this one, as the team was plus-28 while he was on the court. The 6-foot-11 Serbian has enjoyed an excellent preseason through three games (12.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.7 steals in 20.4 minutes per contest), but he's still been outshone by fellow big man Joffrey Lauvergne, who has posted double-doubles in two of those three games. As a result, Lauvergne looks like the leading candidate to replace the injured Jusuf Nurkic (knee) in the starting lineup early on, but Jokic may have at least vaulted himself ahead of J.J. Hickson as the top backup option to this point in training camp.

Jokic played in five summer league games and registered 8.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, and 0.8 steals in 21 minutes per game.

The 253-pound Serbian center struggled with his shot in limited action, converting 46 percent from the field, 2-of-7 three-pointers, and 4-of-7 free-throws. International centers don't traditionally thrive their first few seasons in the NBA, much less a 20-year-old positioned to backup Jusuf Nurkic (knee). Jokic flashed plenty of skill during summer league, but he'll have to adjust to the speed and grind of the NBA game before garnering meaningful playing time.