MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks guard George Hill said the importance of Wisconsin in the upcoming election caused him to fly back here this weekend to assist in a local voting drive. Hill, who lives in San Antonio, worked alongside about 50 volunteers from the Milwaukee-based organization Common Ground walking through local neighborhoods Saturday to encourage people to vote early. “This (state) could make or break the election,” Hill said. “To spend a couple of dollars to get on a flight to come back here, to get out and knock on doors and go around this city, to show them that I care for them just as much as they care for themselves, and show them that we need them, we need them, we need their voices, we need their communities to be better and things like that, it’s all worth it at the end of the day.” Hill wore a shirt with the message “VOTE” and a Bucks logo plus a mask with the message “Votes Count In the 414” as he walked through several blocks in various neighborhoods with a group... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks guard George Hill said the importance of Wisconsin in the upcoming election caused him to fly back here this weekend to assist in a local voting drive. Hill, who lives in San Antonio, worked alongside about 50 volunteers from the Milwaukee-based organization Common Ground walking through local neighborhoods Saturday to encourage people to vote early. “This (state) could make or break the election,” Hill said. “To spend a couple of dollars to get on a flight to come back here, to get out and knock on doors and go around this city, to show them that I care for them just as much as they care for themselves, and show them that we need them, we need them, we need their voices, we need their communities to be better and things like that, it’s all worth it at the end of the day.” Hill wore a shirt with the message “VOTE” and a Bucks logo plus a mask with the message “Votes Count In the 414” as he walked through several blocks in various neighborhoods with a group... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks guard George Hill said the importance of Wisconsin in the upcoming election caused him to fly back here this weekend to assist in a local voting drive. Hill, who lives in San Antonio, worked alongside about 50 volunteers from the Milwaukee-based organization Common Ground walking through local neighborhoods Saturday to remind people to vote. “This (state) could make or break the election,” Hill said. “To spend a couple of dollars to get on a flight to come back here, to get out and knock on doors and go around this city, to show them that I care for them just as much as they care for themselves, and show them that we need them, we need them, we need their voices, we need their communities to be better and things like that, it’s all worth it at the end of the day.” Hill wore a shirt with the message “VOTE” and a Bucks logo plus a mask with the message “Votes Count In the 414” as he walked through several blocks in various neighborhoods with a group that included... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Pat Riley is always looking around for ways to make the Miami Heat better. This offseason has him wondering if that improvement might come from within. The Heat president said Friday that the top offseason priority of the Eastern Conference champions “is to take care of the players that we have” such as free-agent-to-be Goran Dragic, all while maintaining salary cap flexibility to add an impact player in a 2021 offseason that could see many stars on the move. “We have a good idea of what we want to do,” Riley said in his annual end-of-season media availability. No plan can be considered completely firm yet; the NBA’s board of governors were meeting Friday, simultaneous to Riley speaking, to discuss ideas about when it might be feasible to start next season -- with Dec. 22 as the initial target for a season of about 72 games. And the financial details for next season remain unclear as well, such as the salary cap and luxury tax numbers. All that will have an obvious impact on... [More]

Tyronn Lue is ready to follow in Doc Rivers’ footsteps. That has nothing to do with coaching the Los Angeles Clippers. He wants to be a voice for change. Rivers has been one of Lue’s most trusted mentors for years, and his teaching point in these times has been clear. Rivers isn’t going to coach forever. Neither is Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs, another of the NBA's strongest coaching voices. Someone is eventually going to have to fill their roles as two of the go-to speakers in the league, as champions for change, and Rivers wants Lue to step up to be that someone. “He needs me to be that next voice for the Black coaches coming up through the NBA,” Lue said in an interview with The Associated Press. “Doc is great. Any time there’s a crisis or anything gets bad for our country, he’s always a spokesperson for the NBA. Him and Pop. ... And Doc told me: ‘Ty, you have to be that next one. You have to be the one to step to the forefront, protect the Black coaches, and speak out for... [More]

Tyronn Lue is ready to follow in Doc Rivers’ footsteps. That has nothing to do with coaching the Los Angeles Clippers. He wants to be a voice for change. Rivers has been one of Lue’s most trusted mentors for years, and his teaching point in these times has been clear. Rivers isn’t going to coach forever. Neither is Gregg Popovich, another of the league’s strongest coaching voices. Someone is eventually going to have to fill their roles as two of the go-to speakers in the NBA, as champions for change, and Rivers wants Lue to step up to be that someone. “He needs me to be that next voice for the Black coaches coming up through the NBA,” Lue said in an interview with The Associated Press. “Doc is great. Anytime there’s a crisis or anything gets bad for our country, he’s always a spokesperson for the NBA. Him and Pop. ... And Doc told me, ‘Ty, you have to be that next one. You have to be the one to step to the forefront, protect the Black coaches, and speak out for the Black coaches.’” Lue’s... [More]

Two people with knowledge of the situation say Stan Van Gundy has agreed to become the next coach of the New Orleans Pelicans, where he’ll get the chance to work with No. 1 overall draft pick Zion Williamson. Van Gundy agreed to a four-year contract, according to one of the people who spoke Wednesday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the hiring had not been announced. In New Orleans, Van Gundy will replace Alvin Gentry, who was let go after the Pelicans missed this season’s playoffs. Part of the problem for the Pelicans this season was that Williamson missed most of the season; he averaged 22.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game on 58% shooting, albeit in only 24 games. The Pelicans were 30-42 this past season. They have a promising young core with Williamson, Most Improved Player Brandon Ingram, Jaxson Hayes and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, plus currently hold four picks in this year’s draft. Van Gundy spent parts of 12 seasons coaching Miami, Orlando and Detroit, winning... [More]

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — New Indiana Pacers Kevin Bjorkgren went right to work Wednesday. Less than 24 hours after accepting the job, the 45-year-old former Toronto Raptors assistant started explaining his plan. He expects the Pacers to move the ball and take more 3-pointers. He wants the defense to be more disruptive. He promises not to get locked into rotations and will be willing to take risks. Perhaps most important, he believes there needs to be more communication between coaches and players. Those are exactly the traits president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard hoped to find when he embarked on a coaching search two months ago and Bjorkgren became the perfect fit. “There are people in this world who bring energy and you like being around them," Pritchard said after introducing Bjorkgren on a Zoom call. “I think the litmus test is when those guys call you, you can’t wait to pick up the phone. Nate has those characteristics, and when he went through his presentation he created a... [More]

A person with knowledge of the situation says Tyronn Lue has agreed to become the next coach of the Los Angeles Clippers. Final terms were still being worked on, said the person who spoke to The Associated Press Thursday on condition of anonymity because no contract had been signed. Lue will replace Doc Rivers, who had coached the Clippers for the last seven seasons. Lue was on Rivers’ staff this season when the Clippers wasted a 3-1 lead over Denver and lost in the Western Conference semifinals. ESPN first reported the agreement between Lue and the Clippers, saying it was a five-year deal. Lue went 128-83 in parts of four seasons as coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, taking over at the midpoint of the 2015-16 season and leading them to their first NBA title. He left the Cavs after six games of the 2018-19 season. That 2016 title team had LeBron James — who just led the Los Angeles Lakers to the 2020 NBA title. Lue also was a candidate for other jobs this offseason, including in Houston and New Orleans. The Clippers — in the first season of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George playing together — went 49-23 this regular season, the fourth-best record in franchise history. ___ More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

HOUSTON (AP) — Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey is stepping down on his own accord, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Thursday because the move hasn’t been announced. It was first reported by ESPN. The Rockets have made the playoffs 10 times since Morey was hired in May 2017, including the last eight seasons. Morey was responsible for the blockbuster trade that brought James Harden to Houston from Oklahoma City. The Rockets reached the Western Conference finals twice under Morey but were unable to win their first championship since the team captured consecutive titles in 1994-95. The move comes after coach Mike D’Antoni told the team he would not return after the Rockets lost to the Lakers in the conference semifinals. Morey caused an international uproar last year when he tweeted support for anti-government protesters in Hong Kong. Morey tweeted an image that said: “Fight For Freedom. Stand With Hong Kong.” His tweet was in reference to pro-democracy demonstrations in the semiautonomous Chinese territory that had been mired in escalating violence between protesters and law enforcement. The tweet caused businesses in China to cut ties with the Rockets and broadcasters there refused to air the team’s games this season. NBA telecasts in China, however, resumed during the recent NBA Finals.

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks forward Kristaps Porzingis had surgery to address a lateral meniscus injury in his right knee, and the team said Friday there was no timetable for a return. The 7-foot-3 Latvian injured the knee in the opener of a first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers in August. Porzingis played the next two games before being sidelined the remainder of a series won in six games by the Clippers. The Mavericks ended a three-year run of missing the playoffs behind the European pairing of Porzingis and 21-year-old sensation Luka Doncic. It isn't clear when NBA training camps will start because of the pandemic, but Commissioner Adam Silver has said he doesn't expect next season to begin before January. Porzingis averaged 20.4 points and 9.5 rebounds in his first season with Dallas. He missed all of 2018-19 after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in what ended up being his final game with the New York Knicks in February 2018. The Mavericks acquired Porzingis in a seven-player deal before the trading deadline in 2019 and immediately said he wouldn't play the rest of that season. He signed a $158 million, five-year max contract with Dallas in July 2019. ___ More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Michele Roberts planned on being in the NBA’s restart bubble at Walt Disney World for a few days. Three weeks, at the most. She never left. The executive director of the National Basketball Players Association will be in the bubble from start to finish, meaning she’ll be there when either the Los Angeles Lakers or Miami Heat get their hands on the Larry O’Brien Trophy at the conclusion of the NBA Finals that resume Friday night. Her reason for staying: Her realization of how much work that could be done on matters relating to social justice and the fight against racial inequality, along with the chance to connect with so many players individually on such a regular basis. “I wouldn’t trade having done this for the world,” Roberts said in an interview with The Associated Press. “You have a chance to interact at a level that I, through the last 6 1/2 years, have never had. We’ve had our meetings, around each other for a day and a half or two days, but this was... [More]

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — NBA star Chris Paul has enrolled in a historically Black college in North Carolina, where he will take a class and encourage students to get to the polls. The Oklahoma City guard has enrolled at Winston-Salem State, across town from Wake Forest, where he played for two seasons before going to the NBA, the Winston-Salem Journal reported. His parents also attended Winston-Salem State. “We are providing transportation to HBCU students to get the polls so we are working on that now,” Paul said recently on ESPN's “First Take,” adding that he's partnered with two other NBA players to help HBCU students get to the polls. During the NBA playoffs, Paul raised awareness of HBCU’s by wearing different shoes representing schools such as Winston-Salem State, North Carolina A&T and N.C. Central.

BOSTON (AP) — Jayson Tatum emerged as a bona fide star, Jaylen Brown showed he can be a consistent presence in the lineup and Kemba Walker helped the Celtics put the failed Kyrie Irving experiment behind them. But following their Eastern Conference finals loss to Miami, it’s clear there is still work to do in Boston after the Celtics squandered their best opportunity yet under coach Brad Stevens to make it to the NBA Finals. Stevens said he heads into the offseason lamenting only the outcome and not the effort by his players during the abnormal season. “My regret is not what we put in. My regret is not how we prepared or worked or how hard our guys worked or how committed they were to playing and staying together,” he said. “You look back at those first couple of games (against Miami) and it put us in a tough spot. I just think that ultimately we had our chances and we didn’t take advantage of it enough.” The Celtics returned from the COVID-19-caused hiatus and emerged as one of the hottest... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Doc Rivers says he’s out as coach of the Los Angeles Clippers, though did not specify if he chose to leave on his own or if he was fired. Rivers announced in a statement posted to Twitter that he is not returning as coach. The move comes about two weeks after the Clippers wasted a 3-1 series lead and lost to the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference semifinals. Rivers spent seven seasons with the Clippers, making the playoffs in six of them — major success for a once-woebegone franchise. This season's team, with the summer 2019 additions of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, was expected to compete for a championship. But losing three closeout opportunities to the Nuggets cost the Clippers a chance to play the Los Angeles Lakers in the West finals, and surely played a role in Rivers not remaining as coach. “When I took this job, my goals were to make this a winning basketball program, a free agent destination, and bring a championship to this organization,”... [More]

DENVER (AP) — With bags on his back, Nikola Jokic playfully swerved his way through the crowd of family and friends gathered at the airport terminal. The Denver Nuggets finally returned home after their longer-than-many-anticipated stay inside the NBA bubble. Arriving with them, a new reputation — the comeback crew. The Nuggets overcame a pair of 3-1 series deficits in advancing to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2009. Their extended stay at Disney in Florida ended when LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers sent them packing after Game 5. Still, they accomplished something historical in becoming only the third team in the U.S. major pro sports to rally from a pair of 3-1 deficits in the same playoffs. They joined the 1985 Kansas City Royals and 2003 Minnesota Wild. “People around this country, around the world, who were watching the playoffs, this group of guys, you would be hard-pressed to find a better story coming out of this bubble,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — It was June 30, 2019. The Miami Heat had an evening all planned out for their recruitment of free agent Jimmy Butler, down to every detail. They greeted him with music from Irish singer Dermot Kennedy, one of his favorites. A buffet dinner was set up, tables overlooking the water of Biscayne Bay. They had players-turned-executives Shane Battier and Alonzo Mourning there to talk about what it’s like to be part of the Heat. And then it was time to go inside, break into a smaller group, get down to business and give him the sales pitch. Butler never let Heat President Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra even get started. There was no need. He’d already picked Miami. He just hadn’t told them yet. “I was like, ‘I’m home,’” Butler said. The machinations of a sign-and-trade followed before things could be official, but just like that, the Heat had a new star and newfound hope. Season 1 of the Butler era in Miami will end on a stage that he’s never been before — the... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Timberwolves guard Malik Beasley was in jail Sunday on charges of drug possession and receiving and concealing stolen property, after his arrest the night before. The Athletic first reported Beasley's arrest Saturday night at his home in Plymouth, a suburb of Minneapolis. ESPN reported that police obtained a search warrant for Beasley's home after a complaint that he brandished a weapon at a person and officers found marijuana and guns in the home. “We’re aware of the situation involving Malik and in the process of gathering more information,” Timberwolves coach Ryan Saunders said. Beasley participated in voluntary workouts at the team facility earlier this year. He has not taken part in group workouts that began this week for teams that didn't qualify for the NBA's restart in Florida after the four-plus-month pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 23-year-old Beasley will be a restricted free agent when the season ends. The 19th overall pick in the 2016 draft by Denver, Beasley averaged 20.7 points in 14 games for Minnesota after being acquired in a trade with the Nuggets in February. Beasley's attorney, Steve Haney, did not immediately respond to a phone message left Sunday by The Associated Press. ___ More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/NBA

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Bam Adebayo has not wanted much credit for anything this season, always deferring to others in the Miami Heat locker room when things are going well. Things didn’t go well Friday night. And Adebayo wanted — demanded, really — all the blame. His stat line — 13 points, eight rebounds, eight assists on 5-for-11 shooting — certainly didn’t look as abysmal as Adebayo made his effort sound after Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals, when Miami fell apart in the third quarter and saw its series lead trimmed to 3-2 after a 121-108 loss to the Boston Celtics. But he didn’t like much of anything about his night and headed back to the hotel following the game vowing that he would find a way to be better in Game 6 on Sunday. “I put that game on me,” Adebayo said. “It’s not my teammates’ fault, it’s not my coaches’ fault. It’s me. I missed too many shots I should have made. Put that one on me.” No matter what the subject matter was within the handful of questions he... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Bulls weren't on Billy Donovan's radar when he and the Oklahoma City Thunder parted ways after five successful seasons. Things sure changed in a hurry. “I wasn’t looking at anything," Donovan said. "It was five great years in Oklahoma City. I think it’s always emotional when you leave a place that you enjoyed working with the people you were working with. I was around some terrific people in the organization, tremendous players. You’re just kind of decompressing. So this kind of came out of left field for me.” The Bulls introduced Donovan as their coach on Thursday, two days after they announced they landed arguably the most attractive candidate on the market to help turn around a struggling team with new management. Donovan goes from working with stars such as Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and Paul George and Chris Paul to trying to lift a franchise with one playoff appearance in five seasons. He was 243-157 with the Thunder and led them to the playoffs... [More]