NBA

AP Basketball WriterA thankful Popovich bids farewell to 'irreplaceable' DuncanBy TIM REYNOLDSGregg Popovich spoke for about 15 minutes, sometimes unable to hide his emotions, all the while wearing a T-shirt that had Tim Duncan's face printed on the front. When the last question was answered, the coach turned, put...

Team doctors have instructed New York Knicks coach Mike Woodson to cut Amar'e Stoudemire's minutes after the power forward experienced soreness in his surgically repaired left knee in Monday's loss to Boston at Madison Square Garden. Neither Woodson nor Stoudemire termed the latest development a "setback" in Stoudemire's attempt to...

NEW YORK (AP) Miami Heat guard Gerald Green was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Friday for making menacing gestures in an exhibition game.The incidents occurred with 5:33 and 5:12 left in Miami's 110-105 victory over Washington on Wednesday night. Green scored 28 points in the game.

DENVER (AP) - The Denver Nuggets have hired Michael Malone as their new coach.Malone got the job over Melvin Hunt, who served as interim coach after Brian Shaw was fired on March 3. The players lobbied for the Nuggets to make Hunt the full-time coach.Malone was fired by Sacramento...

AP Sports WriterJames returns, Cavaliers debut new starting lineupBy KAREEM COPELANDThe King has returned.LeBron James made his preseason debut Tuesday night after missing Cleveland's first three games with a sprained left ankle. He scored 17 points, but also had eight turnovers in the 108-94 loss to the Chicago Bulls.It...

AP Basketball WriterLaVar Ball tells ESPN Walton has lost Lakers; coaches reactBy TIM REYNOLDSDallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle responded angrily Sunday after LaVar Ball's claim that the Los Angeles Lakers no longer want to play for coach Luke Walton.Ball, the outspoken father of Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball, made...

NBA sets salary cap at just over $109 millionNEW YORK (AP) The NBA set the salary cap for the 2019-20 season at $109.14 million, a raise of just over $7 million from last season.The tax level will be $132,627,000 and the minimum salary, which is 90 percent of...

The Latest: Tony Parker leaving San Antonio for CharlotteBy The Associated PressThe Latest on NBA Free Agency (all times EDT):3:50 p.m.Tony Parker's time in San Antonio is over, after 17 seasons and four NBA championships.A person with knowledge of the negotiations says Parker has agreed to sign a two-year,...

AP Sports WriterNBA coaches prepare for possible intriguing playoff matchupsBy KYLE HIGHTOWERWith NBA games indefinitely on hold, there has been a lot of discussion about postseason possibilities - including by coaches around the league.They're preparing for what a resumption of the season that wascould look like in the wake...

AP Basketball WriterFor LeBron, another Cavs' sweep is within reachBy TIM REYNOLDSLeBron James doesn't prolong the inevitable.The last seven times that James' teams have had a 3-0 lead in a playoff series, the matchup has ended in the most humane fashion - a sweep. He gets a chance at...

AP Sports WriterStephen Curry embraces Warriors' change, praises DurantBy JANIE McCAULEYOAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Someday, years or even decades from now, at one of those celebratory reunions teams like to do, Stephen Curry knows he and Kevin Durant will reminisce with fondness about their three insanely successful years together...

AP Sports WriterMom of T-wolves star Karl-Anthony Towns dies from COVID-19By DAVE CAMPBELLMINNEAPOLIS (AP) Jacqueline Cruz-Towns, the mother of Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns, died Monday due to complications from COVID-19 after more than a month of fighting the virus. She was 59.The Timberwolves made the announcement via...