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NBA Rumors
The daily league-wide NBA rumors page
By InsideHoops.comUpdated Monday, November 4, 2024 at 9:45 a.m. ET
Joel Embiid was involved in an altercation with a Philadelphia columnist in the locker room after the 76ers' 124-107 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night, shouting at him during an exchange of words before eventually shoving him. "We are aware of reports of an incident in the Sixers locker room this evening and are commencing an investigation," an NBA spokesman said in a statement. Embiid took issue with a recent column by Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes. In it, Hayes mentioned Embiid's son and late brother -- both named Arthur -- while questioning Embiid's professionalism and effort to stay in shape. - ESPN.com
Philadelphia 76ers star Paul George is expected to make his season debut Monday at the Phoenix Suns, barring any setbacks, sources told ESPN on Sunday. George, a nine-time NBA All-Star, has been out since suffering a bone bruise in his left knee on Oct. 14, when his knee buckled on a defensive play in the second quarter of a preseason game at the Atlanta Hawks. Tests showed no structural damage. - ESPN.com
Andrew Wiggins had been waiting to make that statement for a while. He missed 56 games over the past two seasons as he cared for his ailing father, Mitchell, who died in July. And when he was able to play, he struggled through two of the worst seasons of his career. So Wiggins spent the summer traveling between Houston and San Francisco, working with a personal trainer and Warriors assistant coach Jacob Rubin. He practiced ballhandling, shooting, closeout shots and driving and finishing at the rim. Wiggins and Rubin worked out seven days a week for about two hours each day. Some days, it was workouts with four to five other coaches playing with them. Other days, it was focusing on technique and skill development. "It was really just about polishing up everything I know I can already do," Wiggins told ESPN. - ESPN.com
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Anthony Edwards has been bombs away from downtown this season, and just over a week in he is making more 3-pointers than any other player in the league. Can he maintain that pace and be the 3-point king of the league this season? According to ESPN BET, Edwards is up to the second-shortest odds to lead the league in 3-pointers made per game at +750. He's still a significant underdog to odds-on favorite Stephen Curry (-120), but his odds are a lot shorter on Friday than they were on Tuesday (+2000). So, if you believe the Ant Man can do it, now is the time to get in. - ESPN.com
The Nuggets have an ownership group that has historically avoided paying luxury taxes and a front office hard-capped by the NBA's restrictive collective bargaining agreement. They've lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bruce Brown, Jeff Green and Reggie Jackson from the 2022-23 championship roster -- a role-player talent drain that has strained the relationship between head coach Michael Malone and a front office financially limited in what it can do. "There was this urge to compete, especially from the players and the coaches and even myself," Booth told ESPN. "You want to win, especially coming off the heels of winning the championship. And that's probably where the tension started. "What are you guys trying to do? Are you trying to win? Are you trying to develop? I think everybody had the best intent going in. There was buy-in. But I think competition and the focus on that can distract you from the buy-in." - ESPN.com
Victor Wembanyama had the second 5x5 game of his career while leading the San Antonio Spurs to a 106-88 victory over the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. Wembanyama had 25 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 steals and 5 blocks, giving him at least five in five categories. He also had a 5x5 game in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 23. His performance Thursday night made him the third player with multiple 5x5 games all time, joining Hakeem Olajuwon (six) and Andrei Kirilenko (three). - ESPN.com
And this time, he got his first NBA bucket. Bronny scored on a 14-foot step-back jumper from the left wing over Jaylon Tyson with 2:03 remaining in the fourth quarter, causing the wave of fans that stuck around to see the moment to stand up and show appreciation for the hometown product. "It was insane," Bronny said of the reception after finishing with 2 points, 2 assists and 1 steal in five minutes. "Much more than I anticipated for sure. But it's all love. It was insane. It was a nice moment. The chants really got me. I was straight-faced, but I felt it and it felt really good, especially coming from here. "Yeah, it was a special moment for me for sure." - ESPN.com
Chet Holmgren led a suffocating defensive effort by the Oklahoma City Thunder in their 105-93 win Wednesday over the San Antonio Spurs. Yet in immediate aftermath, the 22-year-old found himself downplaying the budding rivalry with Spurs 7-footer Victor Wembanyama. Asked about the spectacle of the matchup with Wembanyama, who unanimously won NBA Rookie of the Year last season, Holmgren, the runner-up, chalked it all up to promotion. "Because the NBA is a business, and the league has been built around players playing basketball," Holmgren said. "It's about getting people to come and watch the games. That's one of the ways they do it: by advertising the players. I just see it as a form of advertisement. It doesn't change what our mission is. We're trying to win the basketball games. The NBA is gonna handle the business around it." - ESPN.com
In only his fourth game with the Knicks, Towns went wild -- 44 points, by far the most by any New York player in this still-young season, leading his club to a 116-107 win over the Heat. He might be a perfect fit into the decades-long Knicks-Heat rivalry. Towns averages 25.4 points in his career in games at Miami, his second-highest road average against any opponent. He averages 25.8 points in games at Indiana. "The weather," Towns told MSG Network after the game, when asked why he likes games in Miami so much. "I was in Minnesota. It's cold. It's hot here. I like that." Towns, traded by Minnesota to New York as camps were opening about a month ago in the deal that sent Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to the Timberwolves, wasn't off to a bad start to the season by any measure. His first three games: 12 points, 21 points and 13 points, with two double-doubles. Not eyepopping, but not bad, either. - ESPN.com
Retired Heat legends Dwyane Wade and Udonis Haslem have made it known for the past few years that they view center Bam Adebayo as the next face of the franchise. But Wade made that point loud and clear in recent days while in Miami to celebrate the unveiling of his bronze statue in front of Kaseya Center. “To be able to be here with who is the future face of this organization, Bam, it means everything because he gets it, he understands it,” Wade said to a crowd during a community event Thursday, teaming up with Adebayo to show off a new and improved basketball court at Chapman Partnership in downtown Miami that was originally donated by Wade years ago and Adebayo recently revamped. - Miami Herald
When the NBA schedule comes out each summer, LeBron James has several dates he immediately zeroes in on. Playing on Christmas Day is a given -- this year he will play in the signature holiday game for the 19th time, already a record. Then there's his birthday, Dec. 30, a day he's played and thrived on dating back to high school. One of the most memorable birthdays was just two years ago in 2022, the day he turned 38, when he scored 47 points in a win against the Atlanta Hawks. But there are two more dates he circles. The first is Halloween, James' favorite holiday since he was a child. A lifelong fan of scary movies, James has helped make dressing up as an adult cool over the past two decades. His elaborate costumes often go viral and become the centerpieces of lavish parties he throws for teammates and friends. - ESPN.com
Wembanyama and Holmgren are multifaceted, extreme examples of a modern big-man archetype: 7-footers who protect the rim on defense and can space the floor as 3-point threats offensively. They impact the most valuable real estate in basketball -- the paint -- on both ends of the floor, clogging that territory as elite shot blockers and opening driving and cutting lanes for teammates simply by standing 25-plus feet from the hoop. These two face off again on Wednesday as the Thunder host the Spurs (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). "If you can play defense and shoot the ball, you can pretty much play on any court anywhere," Holmgren told ESPN. "Those are two things that are always needed on the basketball court, and that's kind of where the foundation of my game started." - ESPN.com
Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen is day-to-day with lower back spasms that forced him to exit Utah's 113-96 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night. Markkanen logged 17 minutes against Sacramento before missing the entire the second half, when the Kings broke open the game with a 14-2 run to end the third period. "His back pretty much locked up," Jazz coach Will Hardy told reporters. "He got treatment throughout halftime, and with about a minute left on the clock, was still on the table, not really able to move. So it was my decision, and our medical team's decision, to hold him out." - ESPN.com
Utah Jazz forward Taylor Hendricks is expected to miss the remainder of the season after suffering a fractured right fibula and dislocated ankle in Monday's 110-102 loss to the Dallas Mavericks, sources told ESPN. The Jazz confirmed the nature of Hendricks' injuries after the game. The second-year player was to return to Utah with the team for further testing Tuesday, coach Will Hardy said. "That's hard to stomach," Hardy said of Hendricks' injury. "He's put in a lot of hard work. He's a great kid, and so we're really just trying to focus on him, his health, keeping him up, his spirits up as he begins the road of his recovery. But these are the moments in sports that suck." - ESPN.com
When Sam Hauser went down with the back injury that’s now sidelined him for three straight games, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said the plan to replace one of his top reserves would vary each night. On Monday, it included Boston’s youngest player for the first time. Jordan Walsh saw the biggest minutes of his NBA career against the Milwaukee Bucks and earned applause for his performance in a 119-108 win at TD Garden. “I thought Jordan played great,” Jaylen Brown said. “His minutes were exceptional for our team. He made some big-time offensive rebounds, had some big defensive possessions. Credit to him being ready. Big game, big moment for a young player playing against a potential playoff matchup. I thought he added and contributed to us getting a win tonight.” - Boston Herald
Warriors guard Stephen Curry was scheduled to undergo an MRI on Sunday evening for a left ankle sprain that forced him to exit Golden State's 112-104 loss to the LA Clippers early in the fourth quarter. Coach Steve Kerr said Curry described the injury as "mild or moderate" after the game. However, there is a level of concern for the veteran, as he has suffered multiple sprains on that ankle. The team is bracing for Curry to miss time, possibly several games, sources told ESPN. - ESPN.com
Jordi Fernandez kept the game ball from his first NBA win as a head coach, which he said will be a reminder of where he came from and where he hopes his career will lead. "I'm going to put it in my office," Fernandez said, "because my wife does a great job decorating the house and she doesn't want my basketball stuff there." The rookie head coach earned the victory in his third game Sunday when the Brooklyn Nets beat the Milwaukee Bucks 115-102. Fernandez, a native of Badalona, Spain, said his wife and kids were at the game, along with his parents, friends and extended family. - ESPN.com
Kevin Durant became the eighth player in NBA history to score 29,000 career points, reaching the mark Saturday night as his Phoenix Suns beat the Dallas Mavericks 114-102. Durant joins an elite list of players who have reached the 29,000-point plateau, headlined by LeBron James, the NBA's career scoring leader with 40,543 points. Behind James are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki, Wilt Chamberlain and Durant. - ESPN.com
The 28-year-old Brunson raised eyebrows across the league in July, when he signed a team-friendly four-year, $156.5 million extension when he could have waited until next summer to secure a far more lucrative five-year deal. The choice -- which gave the Knicks' front office coveted salary cap flexibility under the dreaded second apron -- was in line with athletes such as Jeter, Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes, superstars who all took less money to bolster the rosters around them. Aside from the $40 million per year he'll earn through the 2027-28 season, New York has invested heavily in Brunson's future. - ESPN.com
Playing a total of 39.8 minutes in two of San Antonio's five preseason outings, Victor Wembanyama acknowledged the team's 120-109 season-opening loss Thursday to the Dallas Mavericks proved "a little hard conditioning-wise." Wembanyama played 28 minutes and finished with 17 points on 5-of-18 shooting with 9 rebounds, 1 assist and a game-high-tying 4 turnovers. "Some moments felt great," Wembanyama said. "A little hard conditioning-wise at first, of course [as] I expected. But I think we had some good basketball moments and some really bad ones." Wembanyama played a role in generating one of San Antonio's few positive opening-half highlights late in the second quarter, when he pointed his left index finger skyward, signaling for point guard Chris Paul to let it fly. - ESPN.com
Klay Thompson's takeoff with his new franchise was pretty impressive, too. He scored 22 points in 26 minutes during Dallas' season-opening 120-109 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night. He was 7-of-13 from the floor and 6-of-10 from 3-point range, setting a record for 3s made in a Mavericks debut. He contributed in the gritty aspects of the game as well, grabbing seven rebounds and three steals. "He was great, man," Mavs superstar Luka Doncic said. "Just knocking down a lot of shots and he was moving out there. He played great defense, too." - ESPN.com
"Yeah, it was crazy," Durant said of The Wall. "I was just staring at it the whole time. You're not used to that." It has 51 uninterrupted rows of seats, but the first 13 rows are filled with Clippers die-hard fans whose fandom is vetted by the franchise beforehand. The fans in those first 13 rows are expected to stand and chant for the entire game and create an atmosphere similar to a college student section. This was Clippers owner Steve Ballmer's vision when he went over designs for the $2 billion arena. He wanted a home-court advantage unlike any other in the NBA, and it nearly helped the Clippers pull out their first win in the state-of-the-art building. The Wall and the high-tech 4K Halo board -- the largest double-sided halo display in an arena setting, and almost a full acre long -- are perhaps the two biggest features that make Intuit Dome unlike any other NBA arena. - ESPN.com
"This is as deep of a team as I've ever coached, and we've got to lean into that," Kerr said after the Warriors' 139-104 win. "I've never played 12 before, but we're going to do it. "I was thinking, well, maybe I'll just play 10 and we'll have to tell two of these guys that they're going to sit. But I just couldn't justify that." Golden State started a lineup of Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis, a group Kerr said he'd like to be the starting five this season. Buddy Hield was the first off the bench, followed by Kevon Looney and Brandin Podziemski. Next were Melton and Anderson and then Moody. - ESPN.com
For Zaccharie Risacher, it was the perfect start to an NBA career of such promise. A wide-open look from outside the 3-point stripe. Nothing but net. But the French teenager quickly learned what a steep learning curve he faces in his rookie season with the Atlanta Hawks. Risacher, the league's No. 1 draft pick, missed his next six shots and finished the night with seven points on 2-of-8 shooting. Still, he was all smiles after the Hawks held on against the Brooklyn Nets for a 120-116 victory in the season opener Wednesday. - ESPN.com
Days before what he considers to be the true grand opening of the Intuit Dome, Steve Ballmer pondered if anything in the LA Clippers' new $2 billion stadium could've turned out better. "The sinks aren't quite as deep as I wanted them to be," Ballmer said, sitting in his personal lounge just a few steps away from the court. He demonstrated how he likes to shake his hands dry after washing them. "That's where you need a deep sink ... I just don't like it when the bathrooms get wet on the floor." The richest owner in the NBA spared no expense when designing the NBA's newest arena. No detail was too small for Ballmer, from the amount of toilets in the building to leg space for each seat, to the exact width of entrance doors. Intuit Dome officially opened on Aug. 15 when musician Bruno Mars took the stage, and other performers like Billy Joel and Usher have since utilized the space, which played host to its first Clippers preseason game on Oct. 14. But for Ballmer, those were like dress rehearsals for Wednesday's grand opening. - ESPN.com
When the LA Clippers open their new Intuit Dome on Wednesday, they will honor and celebrate Jerry West's legendary life and connection to the franchise with a "JW" court decal and a memorial seat where he sat during Clippers games behind the basket near the team's home bench, sources told ESPN. The memorial seat -- which will have West's signature accompanied by "The Logo" -- and decal will be at Intuit Dome throughout the 2024-25 season. The Clippers have also prepared a celebration of life video for West when they play their first regular-season game at the Intuit Dome against the Phoenix Suns (10 p.m. ET on ESPN). - ESPN.com
The Philadelphia 76ers announced that Joel Embiid and Paul George will both miss Wednesday's season opener against the Milwaukee Bucks. Embiid, who didn't play in the preseason for what the team called left knee injury management, will miss not just Wednesday's game but also Friday's game in Toronto and Sunday's game in Indiana. The 76ers said Embiid is "responding well to his individualized plan" and will ramp up his return-to-play activities this week, including going through scrimmages. George will be reevaluated later this week after he suffered a hyperextended left knee that left him with a bone bruise Oct. 14 against the Atlanta Hawks. - ESPN.com
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The InsideHoops.com NBA rumors page features the biggest NBA news and rumors stories from around the league. We've updated this page literally almost every day since the 2000-01 season. There is usually one main morning update, and sometimes a second afternoon or evening update. On special occassions, like around the trade deadline, the draft, or the approach and first week or so of free agency, updates are more frequent. Sometimes 5 or 10 times a day. And literally every hour or two on the biggest days of the basketball year. But in general what you should do is bookmark this page and make it a daily read. Because then you'll know everything all the hot stories that matter most.