NBA — Live Sports Headlines (cached)

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Kyrie Irving returns from 20-month injury layoff with vintage display in Macau

Mavericks star dazzles in return from ACL tearIrving scores 17 points in Dallas’s 132-115 winDusty May hails nine-time All-Star as an ‘artist’Kyrie Irving waited nearly 600 days for his return to the NBA. The Dallas Mavericks didn’t keep him waiting any longer for his welcome-back basket.Irving sco…

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LeBron James is everything Philadelphia wants. And everything it can’t stand | Bryan Armen Graham

The sports-mad city has embraced its new superstar, even as he choppers in from Manhattan and makes no secret of the fact that Philly was never his first choicePhiladelphia has always had an instinctive affinity with athletes who embrace the grind over the glamour. In a place where sports mean a li…

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LeBron James shines in pre-season debut for revamped Philadelphia 76ers

James scores 10 points in 18-minute Sixers debutJaylen Brown leads Philadelphia with 18 pointsNets pull away in third quarter for 114-108 victoryNBA superstar LeBron James delivered a solid first-half performance in his first pre-season game for Philadelphia on Thursday, but the new-look 76ers fell…

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Inside NBA Europe’s $10bn plan that has football clubs queueing to join

Some of the biggest names in European football will bid for a franchise in ESL-style league, now due to launch in 2028The launch of NBA Europe will be delayed 12 months until 2028, with a pre-qualifying competition planned for next year to find four temporary members to join the 16-team league’s in…

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‘It’s sad seeing players promote it’: Wembanyama says he will never endorse gambling companies

Spurs star says he will ‘never’ promote bettingWembanyama says endorsements must reflect his valuesJames, Durant and Antetokounmpo have gambling tiesVictor Wembanyama has ruled out ever endorsing a sports betting company, saying he was saddened to see fellow NBA players lend their names to gambling…

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The ultra-rich face … accountability? Manchester City and Clippers verdicts show it’s possible | Leander Schaerlaeckens

The sports world has accomplished a rare feat: calling out industrial-scale cheating on both sides of the AtlanticSign up for our free newsletter hereThe first stage of billionaire exposure to accountability is vociferous denial.The second is bafflement that such an earthly and pro…

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Knicks halt sales after pricing ‘mistake’ puts season opener tickets above $1,000

Get-in for game v LeBron James’s 76ers spiked to $1,408MSG Sports to restart sales and refund fans who paidThe New York Knicks said on Thursday they are pausing ticket sales after a mistake caused them to be listed at prices that were too high.The NBA champions put individual game tickets for the 2…

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LeBron James once raged against the machine. Increasingly, he helps prop it up

LeBron James was once one of the world’s most outspoken athletes. Now he’s plugging a predictions market and an authoritarian leaderThere was a time when LeBron James’s views on abuses of political power were considered dangerous enough that Donald Trump’s allies told him to shut up and dribble. Bu…

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Ben Simmons handed NBA lifeline in one-year deal with Sacramento Kings

Australian returns on AU$4.9m contract after season on sidelinesFormer No 1 pick hopes to reignite basketball career with fourth clubAustralian former No 1 overall draft pick Ben Simmons has taken a significant step towards resurrecting his NBA career, agreeing a one-year deal with the Sacramento K…

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Will the Clippers’ $30m fine tame the NBA’s billionaire class? We’re about to find out

The league is awash with ultra-wealthy owners. Adam Silver is hoping a hefty punishment for the Clippers will send them a message about who is in chargeWhen Steve Ballmer bought the Los Angeles Clippers for $2bn in 2014, it was widely regarded as a coup for the NBA.Not only is Ballmer one of the ri…

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Clippers docked five first-round draft picks and fined $30m over Kawhi Leonard scandal

Team circumvented salary cap rules to sign starOwner Steve Ballmer lands one-year banThe NBA has handed down one of the biggest punishments in the history of the league to the Los Angeles Clippers after finding that the franchise circumvented salary cap rules when it courted Kawhi Leonard as a free…

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Naomi Osaka pays tribute to NBA star Allen Iverson in basketball-themed US Open outfit

Japanese player wears Iverson’s signature cornrowsOutfit also has newspaper clippings about OsakaNaomi Osaka channeled former NBA star Allen Iverson before her US Open first-round victory over Anastasia Zakharova on Monday.Osaka made her usual fashionable entrance for her tournament opener, which s…

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Luka Dončić looks like a superstar adrift at the Lakers

The Slovenian is one of the best players on the planet. But factors largely beyond his control have started to turn his career into a slogLuka Dončić must feel as though, these past few months, he’s been twirling in a washing machine. He announced a separation from his fiancee in March; reports fol…

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From Showtime to Insurance Time: how the LA Lakers became a $12.5bn hedge fund play

Bob Iger and Josh Kushner’s $12.5bn bid to buy the Lakers shows that NBA teams are no longer family dynasties, but quick flips for private equity sharksFor years, the NBA was built on the alliance of patient money and marketing pizzazz, and no team captured that curious mixture better than the Los …

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Jeanie Buss reportedly attempting to halt her siblings’ attempt to sell remaining stake in Lakers

Jeanie Buss wants to remain as controlling ownerFamily were set to sell stake to Bob Iger and Josh KushnerJeanie Buss is reportedly challenging her siblings’ attempt to sell the family’s remaining stake in the Los Angeles Lakers.Hours after the Buss family released a statement revealing their ⁠inte…

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NBA blasts ESPN for ‘inaccuracies’ in report on Kawhi Leonard-Clippers investigation

NBA is looking into claims of salary cap circumventionESPN says league has no proof owner funneled moneySteve Ballmer denies allegations; Leonard trade on holdThe NBA has disputed an ESPN report on the league’s investigation into possible salary cap circumvention by the Los Angeles Clippers.On Mond…

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As ESPN cuts familiar faces, its retreat from serious NBA coverage is complete

As ESPN cuts expert voices and rewards viral argument, fans who want to understand basketball are building a smarter conversation elsewhereAfter the Phoenix Suns dumped the Golden State Warriors out of last season’s play-in, Stephen A Smith settled behind the First Take desk to explain why Steve Ke…

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The Lakers have become a poker chip for some of the most powerful men in America

One of the most famous teams in the world is about to change hands for the second time in less than a year for more than $12bn. Will anyone push back?One of the most brutal lessons we must learn as fans is that the team we shed blood, sweat and tears for is seen by those who own it as just one of m…

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Triple-double king Russell Westbrook calls time on 18-year NBA career

2017 MVP announces retirement after 18 seasonsWestbrook holds NBA record with 209 triple-doublesGuard spent first 11 seasons with Oklahoma CityRussell Westbrook, the NBA’s career leader in triple-doubles and the 2017 MVP, announced Wednesday he’s retiring after 18 seasons during which he was select…

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Josh Kushner and Bob Iger reportedly buying Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5bn

Mark Walter bought team last year for $10bnIger and Kushner aim to ‘compete at the highest level’Josh ⁠Kushner and Bob Iger ⁠are purchasing ⁠the Los Angeles Lakers for more ⁠than $12.5bn in a record-breaking ⁠deal, ESPN reported on ‌Wednesday, citing ‌sources with knowledge ‌of the deal.Billionai…